Fury over NHS’s ‘absolutely ridiculous’ guidance to ask GP for permission to exercise this winter

GPs have slammed ‘absolutely ridiculous’ official guidance that tells patients to contact their family doctor before exercising this winter.

The measure was included in the ‘Cold weather plan for England’ an official Government document on how to keep Britons healthy during the winter season. 

In its ‘main public health messages’ section it bizarrely asked the public to ‘speak to your GP’ before starting any exercise this winter.

While acknowledging that exercise is ‘good for you all year round’ and it can help keep people warm, the advice states people should speak to their family doctor before doing so. 

‘If possible, trying to move around at least once an hour, but remember to speak to your GP before starting any exercise plans,’ it reads. 

GP groups today condemned the advice, saying it would add to the already stretched workload of family doctors as people called them up for permission to exercise. 

GP’s have slammed official guidance advising the public to contact their family doctor before starting exercise

Going for a jog this winter? make sure you speak to your doctor first, according to ‘ridiculous’ advice from NHS England

Dr John Hughes, head of GP Survival, told Pulse: ‘It’s absolutely typical of the idiocy that comes out of NHS England from people who don’t understand what GPs actually do.’  

‘Given the fact that people are likely to be trying to keep warm by exercising, there may well be a substantial increase in numbers presenting with this if people actually see this. It’s absolutely ridiculous.’

Britons are increasingly frustrated over continuing struggles to contact their GP, with thousands complaining they face daily battle to join telephone queues to try and get an appointment.  

England’s cold weather plan is co-written by NHS England, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and the Met Office. 

The line about contacting a GP before exercising appears to have been included in last year’s guidance as well but has only sprung to attention after the plan was updated this week.

It comes a week after the latest data showed the proportion of people in England seeing their GP face-to-face rose to its highest level since the start of the pandemic.