Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the barriers for people whose medical trauma prevents them from attending GP appointments and other healthcare settings; and what steps her Department is taking to ensure that such individuals are able to access healthcare, local authority services and other support.

We recognise that medical trauma can make attending general practice (GP) appointments and other healthcare settings difficult, creating barriers to healthcare.

To support access, GPs are required under their National Health Service contracts to offer parity across booking routes, including in person, by telephone, and through online consultation tools. This enables patients, including those for whom medical trauma makes attending the practice difficult, to use the route that best meets their needs.