High standards maintained in all areas of PSA’s Standards of Good Regulation review
The General Medical Council (GMC) has maintained the standards of good regulation in all areas an independent review has found.
A performance review by the Professional Standards Authority (PSA), covering the period for 2020/21, has confirmed the GMC met all 18 standards of good practice, including fairness, transparency, efficiency, and public and doctor safety.
Read the full PSA Standards of Good Regulation performance review.
The PSA’s report recognises our work on equality, diversity and inclusion. In particular, our commitment to eliminate disproportionate fitness to practise referrals from employers about ethnic minority doctors by 2026 and to eliminate disproportionate outcomes in medical education and training by 2031.
The report also recognises our work to create two new routes to registration as part of our pandemic response and our work to conclude fitness to practise cases following pandemic delays.
"Being recognised for upholding our high standards of regulation, when medical professionals continue to be under immense pressure, is crucial to promoting patient safety and supporting those hard-working professionals."
Charlie Massey
GMC Chief Executive
Charlie Massey, GMC Chief Executive said:
‘Being recognised for upholding our high standards of regulation, when medical professionals continue to be under immense pressure, is crucial to promoting patient safety and supporting those hard-working professionals.
‘We are committed to eliminating the discrimination experienced by some ethnic minority doctors which is why we have set ourselves some ambitious targets for tackling disproportionality in both medical education and fitness to practise referrals. We cannot solve these problems alone though, and our success will very much depend on our ability to work with and influence the behaviour of our external stakeholders. I am certain we all share a common ground on these issues, and it is my hope that by working together we can eradicate these issues by our target dates.
‘Supporting the recovery in the NHS, as we emerge from this pandemic, remains a priority for us and we will continue to work with other healthcare bodies to identify opportunities which will help meet the demands of modern patient care.’
The PSA for Health and Social Care oversees statutory bodies like the GMC who regulate health and social care professionals in the UK. It assesses performance, conducts audits, scrutinises decisions and reports to Parliament. It also sets standards for organisations holding voluntary registers for health and social care occupations and accredits those that meet them.
