Regulating doctors, ensuring good medical practice

Major reforms proposed to the GMC's fitness to practise work

Press Release

17 Jan 2011

The GMC has proposed major changes to the way it handles cases involving concerns about doctors. The aim is to deliver a quicker system while still maintaining fairness to doctors and patients.

These changes would represent a major reform of our procedures and we are keen to ensure that all those with an interest in our work have the opportunity to contribute and respond.

Niall Dickson, Chief Executive of the GMC

The GMC has today launched a major public consultation on the proposals which recommend that doctors could accept sanctions, including suspension and erasure, without their cases going to a hearing.

Patient protection would be the driving force behind the new system but where possible it would avoid subjecting doctors and patients to long, stressful and sometimes harrowing public hearings. It would also be transparent - even when a case did not end with a hearing, the concerns and any sanctions would still be published on the GMC website.

For those doctors who do not accept the sanction proposed by the GMC or where there is a significant dispute about the facts, cases would still be referred for a hearing.

The consultation document also proposes a more speedy process for dealing with doctors convicted of serious crimes such as murder and rape - the GMC argues that those who have committed such crimes are not fit to be doctors.

Niall Dickson, the Chief Executive of the General Medical Council said:

“We are here to protect patients and that means making sure that only doctors who are fit to practise are allowed to do so.  However, it is not our role to punish doctors or even to provide redress to patients – there are other ways to achieve that.

“Our view is that attending a hearing can be a stressful experience for everyone involved and there is no need to do this if the doctor is willing to accept sanctions that protect patients.

“These changes would represent a major reform of our procedures and we are keen to ensure that all those with an interest in our work have the opportunity to contribute and respond.”

To take part in the consultation, which runs from 17 January to 11 April, visit www.gmc-uk.org/ftpreformconsultation 

Notes to editors:

We will be consulting separately on proposals to ensure the independence of the panels that conduct fitness to practise hearings later this year.

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 http://www.gmc-uk.org/.

The General Medical Council registers and licenses doctors to practise medicine in the UK.

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