Health Secretary Shona Robison has addressed issues facing doctors.
The Dundee MSP admitted GPs are facing serious challenges, but claimed there are reasons for the problems.
“Partly it’s due to the fact that general practice as a career option has become less favoured, so when young doctors are choosing which area of medicine to go into, not enough of them are choosing general practice,” she said.
She added that medical schools have to do more to make general practice attractive.
Ms Robson said: “If you’re told at medical school that everyone should aspire to be something else and not a GP, that’s not a great message.
“So we need to work with them to make sure that the profile and importance of general practice is elevated and improved, but we also need to make sure the job prospects are there for those keen new doctors coming out and choosing general practice.
“The key here is the perception of what general practice is like.
“We have to do a good job to change the headlines so that we’re able to say come and work in general practice, look at the new models of general practice, it’s a great place to work and a great choice to make.”
Ms Robison claimed £20 million is being pumped into looking at completely changing the way primary care is organised.
She said: “Instead of GPs working in isolation, we’re looking at models of care that are about a range of different health professionals working together, with GPs being the clinical expert behind the team.”
Dr Brett La Hay, a GP at Nethergate Medical Centre in Dundee, said: “The Scottish Government has responded to the situation, more so than in England.
“Every year GPs have had to change or alter the work we do.
“That gradually ground us down and that’s where we are right now.
“The current contract has lasted 10 years and now we need another one because they have pushed it so much. They are starting to make the right noises, but it has taken 12 months for them to understand that we can’t take any more.”