The Deep End organisation was inspired by Julian Tudor Hart, a general practitioner (GP) based in Wales in 1961-1991. He formulated the inverse care law, i.e. the geographical areas with the greatest need for healthcare services have the fewest healthcare resources available. This law also applies to Denmark. Citizens with low incomes and chronic diseases often live in deprived areas with GP shortage and far distance to the nearest hospital. Here, the general practitioners are often more stressed and burned out.
The Deep End organisation was established in Scotland in 2009 by Professor Graham Watt. The aim was to counter the adverse effects of the inverse care law by strengthening general practice in deprived areas. Since then, the initiative has spread to England, Ireland, Australia, Japan, Abu Dhabi, Canada and Denmark. The organisation views Deep End GPs as experts in managing complex diseases and believes that these GPs can learn from each other and that others can learn a lot from them.
The Deep End project provides the framework for GPs to meet and exchange experience. In Denmark, several national and local meetings have been held with the Deep End GPs. The project enjoys a large support base among various stakeholders, and a strong societal interest is attached to reducing health inequality.
Deep End Denmark is affiliated with the Research Unit for General Practice in Aarhus, and the research unit organises meetings and facilitates discussions in collaboration with the continuing education unit under the Danish Organization of General Practitioners.
The overall aim of Deep End Denmark is to strengthen general practice in socially deprived areas and thereby reducing the adverse effects of inequality in health.
The activities, comprising networking, feedback and education, focus on increasing the job satisfaction and well-being among GPs and enhancing their skills in the meeting with and the treatment of patients with low socioeconomic background. The sharing of knowledge is supported by a research team that will further develop ideas and proposals brought up in group discussions. An additional aim is to make available new knowledge on equality in health for GP colleagues in the entire country.
Since the project was established in 2023, 60 GPs have already joined the network. As we still have room for more, new invitations to join the network will soon be sent to Deep End clinics. Invitations will be sent by Statitics Denmark to Deep End clinics through e-Boks during the autumn of 2024.
