Regulating doctors, ensuring good medical practice

New revalidation guidance published for responsible officers

Press Release

23 Aug 2012

The General Medical Council (GMC) has published guidance to help responsible officers make revalidation recommendations about doctors.

We've worked with responsible officers from across all four countries of the UK to develop this guidance and make sure it supports them in their role.

Niall Dickson, the Chief Executive of the GMC

Revalidation is expected to begin later this year, subject to approval from the Secretary of State for Health, and the guidance - Making revalidation recommendations: the GMC responsible officer protocol - explains what responsible officers should take into account when deciding what their recommendation should be.

The guidance has been published before revalidation begins so that responsible officers, employers, doctors, and others can familiarise themselves with what responsible officers will need to do in order to make recommendations.

Responsible officers have the ability to make three types of recommendation at the point that a doctor's revalidation is due:

  • a positive recommendation that a doctor should be revalidated
  • a request for a doctor's revalidation date to be deferred (because the doctor needs more time to collect supporting information, for example)
  • a notification of ‘non-engagement’.

The guidance follows publication of the NHS Revalidation Support Team’s ORSA report on readiness in England, showing that more than 80 per cent of doctors in England are now linked to organisations that can support them with revalidation, showing that momentum is building across the system in getting ready for revalidation.

Revalidation should commence for licensed doctors from April 2013 onwards.

Niall Dickson, Chief Executive of the GMC, says:

‘We've worked with responsible officers from across all four countries of the UK to develop this guidance and make sure it supports them in their role. We're committed to ensuring that the guidance remains a practical and up to date resource, and we will keep the guidance under review once revalidation has been introduced to ensure it remains so.

‘Publication of this guidance and the recent ORSA report of readiness in England are significant milestones, reflecting the considerable progress that has been made in preparation for the introduction of revalidation.

‘Over time, revalidation will not only provide greater assurance to patients about the competence of their doctors, it has the potential to enhance patient safety and improve the quality of medical care in the UK.’

Notes to editors

The guidance is available to download from the GMC's website -  Making revalidation recommendations: the GMC responsible officer protocol (pdf).

Guidance on the wider role and functions of responsible officers was published by the Department of Health (England) in January 2011 and by the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (Northern Ireland) in October 2010.

For further information please contact the Media Relations Office on 020 7189 5454, out of hours 020 7189 5444/ 07920 461497, email press@gmc-uk.org, website www.gmc-uk.org.

The General Medical Council registers and licenses doctors to practise medicine in the UK. Our purpose is summed up in the phrase: Regulating doctors, Ensuring Good Medical Practice.

The law gives us four main functions:

  • keeping up-to-date registers of qualified doctors
  • fostering good medical practice
  • promoting high standards of medical education and training
  • dealing firmly and fairly with doctors whose fitness to practise is in doubt