The action group ‘Abolition of ANW obligation’ wants the RGS to no longer require GPs to run ANW services in order to re-register. The action group submitted its arguments, including a poll among general practitioners, in an open letter to the NHG and the LHV last March.
Instead, the action group, consisting of acting GP Marcel van Philips and practice owner Laura Gijsbers, wants the re-registration requirement to be converted into 16 hours of general practice relevant clinical work, regardless of day practice or ANW services.
The action group believes that the general practitioners can sufficiently train themselves in emergency care, since this also occurs in the weekday practice. In addition, the general practitioner is the only medical specialization (apart from the AVG doctors) that has a re-registration requirement that services must be provided, while other specialisms also provide 24-hour care.
Survey
The action group reinforces its argument by sending the results of a survey that they distributed in February 2023 through various online GP groups, such as HAWeb and Telegram. Of the more than 1,600 GPs who completed the survey, 68 percent were in favor of abolishing the re-registration requirement. ‘The survey shows that they also believe that this can contribute to a more acceptable work-life balance,’ says Van Philips.
The LHV will discuss the letter at their upcoming membership meeting. According to Van Philips, the NHG has taken the letter into consideration, but there is no concrete response yet.
