A new study has revealed which university cities are home to the worst student-facing GPs, with Lancaster named one of the worst places to receive medical care for those at university.

The findings, pulled together by Vegetology, are based on comparing the ratings and reviews left for university-owned or partnered medical centres in each city.

They found that the average service is rated just 2.6 stars, meaning students will struggle to get quality care.

Each centre’s star rating was scaled against the number of reviews so that those with a lower score across a higher number of reviewers were considered worse than those who had a lower score but only across a handful of disgruntled patients.

According to the reviews, excessive wait times were the biggest problem with each GP surgery. 

For students in Lancaster, it’s likely that they won’t be satisfied with their care even when they do get an appointment, as medical centres associated with the universities are rated a shocking 1.7 stars out of five. 

Speaking on the findings, wellness expert Chris Smith, said: “As students are starting at university this week, it’s easy for them to put their physical health on the backburner in favour of socialising and getting to grips with their new life.

“However, we know that universities in September and early October are a hotbed for illness, as students mingle in enclosed spaces when attending lecturers and on nights out - with alcohol consumption and a poor diet also elevating the risk of contracting a cold."

Reviews complain about excessive wait times for in-person appointments and when calling to schedule them, as well as ‘unhelpful’ staff and faulty computer systems. 

Note: Cities are ranked according to GP ratings and review count, but the above table only includes their review rating out of five as the primary point of interest. The order is accurate.

These poor ratings are particularly bad news for the undergraduate students who’ll be starting this month, as they’re less likely to receive support when combatting freshers’ flu. 

'Fresher’s flu’ refers to the phenomenon of undergraduate students contracting a cold or full-blown flu during the first few weeks at university and is thought to be caused by large numbers of people from different areas suddenly mingling in close proximity.  

As well as looking at where university students are likely to receive the worst care, the study also calculated where will be the least equipped to help them combat freshers’ flu.

Each city analysed was assigned a score out of 10 based on various metrics, including the amount local universities spend on health facilities per student, medical centre ratings, the availability of university-partnered or owned GPs, and average influenza vaccination uptake. 

The ranking also considered the likelihood of exposure - based on what proportion of the local population are undergraduates - and fresher’s flu prevalence, determined by the volume of Google searches for flu remedies and symptoms throughout September. 

Preston also came out as the worst place overall for exposure risk to freshers flu, with undergraduates equating to over 12% of the local population. 

Chris continued: “It’s essential that students look to boost their immunity to avoid falling ill this year, which can be as simple as upping their vitamin C intake, ensuring they get enough sleep after a busy week, or ensuring they’re eating as well as possible. 

“That’s particularly important for those in the worst cities for fresher’s flu, like Derby and Peterborough, as their student medical centres are clearly unable to provide help quickly, which can result in significant disruption in what’s already a significant upheaval in routine.”