Carrying out unnecessary consultations takes their valuable time and expertise away from the patients who really need it

John Hutton, health minister

Sick pay regulations mean that employees do not have to get a doctor's certificate until they have been off work for seven days or more.

However, many bosses are still demanding the note for shorter absences.

This not only means that a sickly worker has to drag themselves to the surgery unnecessarily, but also that the GP has to waste time writing out the certificate.

Leaflet advice

Health Minister John Hutton said that GPs were busy enough without this additional burden.

"Carrying out unnecessary consultations takes their valuable time and expertise away from the patients who really need it.

"The added workload leads to longer waits for appointments and more bureaucracy, and we are determined to combat this."

The campaign is supported by the Doctor Patient Partnership, a umbrella group representing the British Medical Association and patients' groups.

Its chairman, Dr Simon Fradd, said: "GPs want to provide their patients with a good service but it is frustrating for them when employees are expected to get sicknotes for minor ailments."

A total of 500,000 leaflets are being distributed to GPs throughout the UK which will be given to patients to take back to their employers when they arrive seeking an inappropriate sick note.

The Department of Health is also launching a "Managing Absence" website with advice for firms.

Waiting lists

On Friday, statistics revealed that in November, the total number of patients waiting to be admitted to NHS hospitals in England fell by 2,300, or 0.2%.

However, the total number on the waiting list has risen by more than 10,000 over the past year.

The past month has seen a dramatic fall in the number of people who have been waiting for more than a year for an operation.

In November, the total dropped by 6,700 (16.9%), and the overall figure has fallen by 31% over the past year.

Conservative Shadow Health Spokesman Dr Liam Fox said: "The contrast between these figures, showing what is actually happening in the real NHS, and the self congratulatory tone of the NHS Modernization Board's annual report this week, could not be starker."