What future for solo general practice?
McCormick IR; Thomson AN Department of General Practice, University of Auckland School of Medicine. Marketing theory predicts that solo general practitioners are disadvantaged financially when compared to doctors practising in groups. This is supported by a 1985 random survey of Auckland general practitioners. This shows solo practitioners to have had a significantly lower net and gross income than did group practitioners in the time period 1981-82 to 1984-85. The difference is due to the combined effect of solo practitioners charging marginally lower fees, and seeing less patients weekly than did group practitioners. These results are discussed from a marketing perspective.
