Opinion  

These figures were going to cause patients to flock to walk-in centres as if they were selling the latest Kate Moss hotpants, because their old surgeries were providing such a dismal service. Instead, they reveal that patients are pretty happy with their GPs and surgery opening times.

If there was any doubt that the Hewitt-era DoH was spinning against GPs, these results offer the proof. Back in May, officials warned PCTs to brace themselves for a mass migration of patients 'wanting to change registration to practices with higher satisfaction rates'.

The clear implication was that the majority of patients were dissatisfied with GPs and opening hours, in fact that patients were being failed. An 84 per cent overall satisfaction rate hardly supports those claims.

How officials will square the warnings with the facts will require some world-class rhetorical agility, especially as the DoH is to continue to push for extended opening hours. A 4 per cent demand for evening surgeries and 7 per cent for weekend surgeries is likely to strengthen the BMA's hand at the negotiating table.

This whole process has been another costly example of the DoH's obsession with the idea that GPs are in some way bad doctors. Officials' refusal to believe that GPs could score highly in the quality framework disrupted DoH budgets - now it has spent some £11 million on another wild goose chase. Hardly good for patient services - the same £11 million could have come in very handy for the seriously underfunded Hib jab catch-up plan or treating AMD patients, for example.

There are many problems within the NHS but it seems the DoH cannot get past the idea of the 'bad GP'. This week's working hours figures will inevitably be spun to support this notion again, when all it does is distract from the more pressing issue of tackling real service gaps.