General practice teams in Kent and Medway offered more than 960,000 appointments in July 2025, up three per cent on the year before and up nearly a third on the same period pre-pandemic.
Typically, the summer months see a slow-down in NHS activity due to fewer respiratory viruses circulating, like the flu, but it looks like this year will be the busiest summer in general practice in history.
Earlier in July, the GP patient survey also showed there has been an improvement in patients’ overall satisfaction with their GP practice in Kent and Medway from 65 per cent satisfaction in 2023 to 70 per cent in 2025.
Dr Ash Peshen, GP and deputy chief medical officer at NHS Kent and Medway, said: “This is heartening news as I know how hard general practice staff have been working to make sure more and more people can have an appointment.
“It should be remembered that this increase includes appointments with nurses, physiotherapists and other specialists working in general practice, as some times it is more appropriate for patients to see them.
“Of course, we know it is not always possible for people to get an appointment with their practice as soon as they would like, but to see more and more people satisfied with their GP practice means I am confident we are on the right track.”
Sukh Singh, director of primary and community (out of hospital) care at NHS Kent and Medway, added: “These welcome signs of improvement are down to the efforts of staff in general practice and NHS Kent and Medway as we work together to improve access to GP services in the face of increasing demand.
“The NHS Kent and Medway primary care strategy sets out how we will develop a primary care sector, including general practice, that can fully deliver against the needs of our population.
“This data gives us renewed confidence that we are taking the right action to further improve primary care services for the people of Kent and Medway.”