There’s now an option for you to share some new information through your private GMC online account – regarding your religion and belief, sexual orientation and disability.
We already have some diversity information, which has helped us to identify important issues affecting particular groups of doctors - for example, how ethnicity, gender and place of primary medical qualification can affect the progression of doctors through training.
Through collecting this new information, we can learn even more about important equality and diversity issues affecting doctors. Read our Q&As below to find out more about this new option:
Questions and Answers
Why are you asking for this information? What’s changed?
As you’ll know, we already ask for information about a doctor’s ethnicity, gender and age (pdf) - this has helped us investigate a number of important issues in recent years. For example, we now know a lot more about how ethnicity, gender and place of primary medical qualification can impact on progression through medical education and training. And we’ve commissioned more extensive research on this, to help us understand what we and others might do to address these differences.
We want to build on this and understand more about different protected characteristics, to see how we can better support doctors in the future. You can read more about why we’re introducing these changes on our blog.
What happens if I don’t want to share this information? Is this mandatory?
It’s completely your choice and we appreciate that some individuals would prefer not to share this information. We hope that many doctors will see the value that providing this information could provide over time for the profession.
If you don’t wish to share this information, every question has an option for you to ‘prefer not to say’. Once you’ve completed this, the notification will disappear from the opening page.
What will you do with this information?
We will use the information to understand how our work affects different groups of doctors. For example, collecting ethnicity data from doctors has enabled us to understand the profile of some groups of doctors in our fitness to practise activities, and some key trends on the register.
Who will be able to see this information?
This information will be strictly controlled, as is the case for other personal and sensitive information we hold. It will not be displayed on our online medical register. It will also not be shared with GMC staff involved in making decisions about an application to register or a doctor’s fitness to practise.
The information may be used for research and reporting purposes, but care will be taken to make sure that no doctor is identifiable, as far as possible . We are compliant with legislation and best practice guidelines when handling sensitive data, including the Data Protection Act.
Where will this information be stored?
This information will be stored on our secure, internal database, in exactly the same way we store the other personal and sensitive information you provide through GMC online. We are compliant with legislation and best practice guidelines when handling sensitive data, including the Data Protection Act.
We may share this data with other parties if required by law (for example, if requested in aggregate form under the Freedom of Information Act) where ordered by a court, or where it is otherwise in the public interest (for example for research purposes). Where possible, data will be anonymised or aggregated before we share it with any other party.
Will the information about disability be used to determine if I have health concerns related to my fitness to practise?
No - the information about disability will not be visible to GMC staff involved in making decisions about doctors involved in our fitness to practise procedures.
If I tell you that I am disabled, will it mean you will make reasonable adjustments for me in my interactions with the GMC?
No - this information will be used for high level analysis and research. If you need to know more information about making reasonable adjustments, please see the disability section of the equality and diversity web pages.
Do other organisations ask for this information?
Yes, other organisations ask for this information, for example, NHS organisations routinely collect and analyse data about their workforce. We also ask for this information from our own staff to help us understand the profile of our organisation and whether there are any issues for particular groups of employees.
Can’t you just get this information from my employer or other bodies?
Under data protection legislation, identifiable, sensitive data can’t be shared, except in specific circumstances.
When will you publish information about the number of doctors that are disabled, and have different religions or beliefs and sexual orientations?
We don’t expect to have a full set of data for some years. We will monitor the response rate and publish information when we have meaningful information to share. Any data which is published as part of a report will be anonymised.
Will all doctors or just those with full registration be asked to provide this information?
All doctors who apply for registration and registered doctors who have a GMC Online account will have the option to share this information with us.
How have we selected the categories for ethnicity and religion and belief?
The categories we have used are based on census categories used for Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and England. We wanted to make sure we are consistent with best practice and that our information is comparable with national population figures.
The GMC is committed to treating everyone fairly and meeting our legal responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010 and related legislation (such as the Human Rights Act 1998). One of the ways we do this is by asking people to provide information about their ethnicity, disability, gender, sexual orientation, religion and beliefs.
Giving us this information is optional. If people choose to give it to us, we keep it confidential and hold it securely in line with data protection and other relevant legislation.
We understand that some of the protected characteristics can be sensitive data and we ensure that when processing and publishing equality information we consider the privacy and compliance implications of the Data Protection Act 1998. We ensure that sensitive data is collected proportionately to our aims and we anonymise/pseudonymise any data we publish so that individuals can’t be identified.
We will use the information given to us to analyse and report on statistical trends in medical education and practice in the UK. By collecting this information it can help us to identify key issues, for example:
- Understanding the impact of our policies, practices and decisions on people with different protected characteristics so we can plan our work more effectively.
- Assessing whether we are discriminating unlawfully when carrying out any of our functions.
- Identifying what the key equality issues are for the GMC.
Once we have identified issues, we can then take action, by:
- Considering steps we can take to meet the needs of staff, doctors, patients and the public who share relevant protected characteristics.
- Identifying if there are any actions we can take to avoid discrimination and harassment, advance equality of opportunity or foster good relations.
- Making informed decisions about policies and practices which are based on evidence about the impact of our activities on equality.
- Having due regard for the aims of the general equality duty by ensuring that our staff and associates have the appropriate information for decision-making.
The information may be used by different teams at the GMC. We may also share personal data with other parties if required by law, where ordered by a court, or where it is otherwise in the public interest (for example for research purposes). Where possible, data will be anonymised or pseudonymised before we share it with any other party.
Some of the places we publish diversity information about doctors are:
