Doctors’ leaders have warned that NHS staff at GP surgeries are facing unprecedented abuse and aggression from patients because of an appointments system ‘in meltdown’.

The scale of the deep crisis in GP surgeries was revealed in an emergency summit of more than 60 NHS doctors, dentists and administrative staff in Salford, triggered by a recent rise in verbal abuse.

It follows a recent poll by the Institute of General Practice Management, the body representing GP surgery staff across the UK, which found that 75 per cent of them face abuse every day, including assaults, threats, racism and sexism.

NHS figures released this month show that GP practices in England delivered almost five million more appointments in March 2021 than the month before, and nearly three million more than in March 2019. However, surgeries are still struggling to meet the increasing demand for appointments and GPs have faced fierce media criticism for carrying out phone consultations because of coronavirus restrictions.

The British Medical Association, the UK’s largest doctors’ union, wrote last week to the health secretary, Matt Hancock, to request an urgent meeting about the GP crisis.