Likewise, primary care doctors are seeing similar phenomena and increasingly there are organizations such as Physician Care Direct and the American Academy of Private Physicians which are setup to transition a primary care practice into a model that can be described as two parts Marcus Welby, one part Steve Jobs.

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The NHS confederation, which speaks for managers, described maternity care as a classic example of a service which desperately needed to be reorganised.

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Care Minister Mr Lamb described the findings as "deeply disturbing" and said care providers "obviously" needed to be held to account by the Care Quality Commission.

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