A GP has issued a stark warning as hospital accident and emergency departments are being overwhelmed by patients with minor ailments.
Speaking to GB News, the doctor highlighted a worrying trend of patients attending A&E out of convenience rather than genuine medical need.
Her comments come as it has been revealed that the scale of pressure facing emergency departments from patients seeking help for minor complaints.
Millions of individuals have attended A&E across England for ailments such as coughs, blocked noses and even hiccups, according to analysis of NHS figures.
Dr Bhasha Mukherjee said: "I think the question is, is it a worry or is it a minor inconvenience?
"And are people going to A&E because they think it’s an emergency, or are they just impatient? That definitely makes a difference.
"I had a patient the other day I’m a GP who said, 'I was in hospital for an appointment, and as I was there, I just nipped into A&E because my child had a fever for one day'.
"You can see the mentality: 'As I was there, I might as well.' I think if there were even a minor fee or fine, it would deter people from just turning up because they happen to be passing by.
The doctor highlighted a worrying trend of patients attending A&E out of convenience
|GB NEWS
GB News host Dawn Neesom said: "So you’re part of the problem. I know you’re a GP, but we can’t get to see our GP now.
"Sometimes, when you have a minor ailment, your only opportunity to get help is to go to A&E. It shouldn’t be that way."
Dr Mukherjee agreed: "Absolutely. GPs are inundated. Our appointments fill up quickly every morning.
"We simply do not have enough GPs to offer enough appointments. I think we need to empower general practice and primary care.
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It has been revealed that the scale of pressure facing emergency departments from patients seeking help for minor complaints
| GETTY"It’s much cheaper to offer a GP appointment than to turn up in A&E and God forbid you get admitted.
"For elderly patients with social care issues, ending up admitted is especially problematic. It’s far better to keep people supported in the community.
"Redirecting funds to primary care would help. At the moment, less than 10 per cent of the NHS budget goes to primary care, even though GPs see 90 per cent of patients."
She added: "We now have forms in place where patients can submit queries to their GP practice and be triaged according to the severity of the problem.
"But many patients are unhappy with being directed elsewhere and insist on same-day appointments, often ending up in A&E.
"We need to set boundaries with patients. Without some form of deterrent whether a fee or a fine people will continue to use A&E in the same way they are now."
Health leaders say the trend exposes a fundamental failure to provide timely access to primary care services.
The extent of non-emergency visits is starkly illustrated by the fact that medical staff detected no abnormality whatsoever in more than 2.2 million A&E attendances during 2024-25.
A further half a million patients left emergency departments before receiving any diagnosis, the data shows.
Over the past five years, nearly 1.9 million people sought A&E treatment for headaches, while approximately 1.4 million attended with a cough and 1.2 million with a sore throat.
Attendances for coughs have surged almost tenfold since the pandemic, climbing from roughly 44,000 cases in 2020-21 to 435,728 in 2024-25.
Diarrhoea-related visits more than doubled over the same period, jumping from 59,120 to 143,591.
Constipation cases rose from approximately 41,000 to nearly 71,000, whilst backache attendances almost doubled from 211,266 to 396,724.
Even hiccups saw a significant increase, with cases climbing from 587 to 1,093 over the five-year period.