Council
15 February 2001
To approve
Minutes of Meeting held on 7-8 November 2000
Sir Donald Irvine, President
Dr Angus
Professor Green
Mr Oni
Dr Appleyard
Professor Hatch
Dr Pande
Mrs Atma
Dr Hettiaratchy
Dr Pearsall
Mr Barron
Mr Jackson
Professor Petrie
Professor Sir Colin Berry
Dr Jay
Professor Sir Denis Pereira Gray
Dr Bhanumathi
Dr Keighley
Dr Rennie
Dr Bingham
Miss Khan
Professor Richards
Professor Bird
Dr Korlipara
Dr Robinson
Dr Borman
Dr Kumar
Professor Savage
Professor Boyd
Ms Leggate
Mr Shaw
Mr Brearley
Dr Lewis
Mr Slack
Dame Fiona Caldicott
Sir Alexander Macara
Dr Snashall
Professor Cameron
Dr Macdonald
Dr Stewart
Professor Sir Cyril Chantler
Mrs Macpherson
Professor Stott
Dr Chisholm
Professor Sir Roderick
Professor Stout
Mrs Clark-Glass
MacSween
Professor Thomas
Dr Colman
Mr Malins
Dr Toft
Mr Devaux
Dr Mann
Dr Toynton
Miss Doig
Professor Mansfield
Dr Trowell
Mr Doven
Professor Mackay
Mr Wardell
Professor Drife
Dr McCluggage
Dr F Wilson
The Very Rev Forbes
Professor McDevitt
Dr M Wilson
Dr Fradd
Mr Morton
Mr Winter
Mr Nicholls
Dr Wood
Mr Yates
Finlay Scott
Dr Zeegen
Chief Executive and Registrar
1.
Council Membership
New appointed member of Council
Professor Robert David Hugh Boyd MB Chir FRCP had been appointed by the
University of London and the Society of Apothecaries from 1 September 2000 to
31 August 2003.
New nominated member of Council
Dr Arun Daniel Midha had been nominated by the Privy Council from
1 November 2000 to 31 October 2005.
Renominated members of Council
Mr Jacques Emmanuel Devaux had been renominated by the Privy Council from
1 November 2000 to 31 October 2005.
The Very Reverend Graham Forbes had been renominated by the Privy Council
from 1 November 2000 to 31 October 2005.
Mrs Eileen Walker had been renominated by the Privy Council from
1 November 2000 to 31 October 2005.
2.
President’s Business
Honours
Former member Sir Anthony Grabham had received the BMA Gold Medal for
distinguished merit.
Members who had left the Council
Professor John Newton had left the Council having served since 1996. He served on
the following committees, among others:
CPP 1997-2000
Registration 1998-2000
Mrs Parveen Qureshi had left the Council having served since 1996. She served on
the following committees, among others:
ARC 1997-2000
Registration 1998-2000
2
Professor Michael Whitehouse had left the Council having served since 1999. He
served on the following committees, among others:
ARC 1999-2000
Education 1999-2000
UK Federation of Health Regulators
The President reported his discussions with the other statutory health regulatory
bodies about a proposal to establish a UK Federation of Health Regulators. The
Council endorsed the discussions to date.
Assessment
The Council endorsed a proposal from the President to explore through the PAC the
scope for collaborating with other standard setters on assessments of doctors.
The President reported his meetings with a number of individuals and organisations.
3.
Minutes of meeting held on 11-12 July 2000
On motion from the Chair it was resolved that the minutes of the meeting held on
11-12 July 2000 were a true record, subject to the deletion of Mr Campbell Morton
from the list of those present.
4.
Chief Executive’s Report
The Council noted a report from the Chief Executive on the work of the Office during
the period June-October 2000.
Mr Morton had tabled the question:
‘What plans are being made for the production of a review of the Council’s work
during 2000 that will adequately inform our stakeholders?’
The Chief Executive reported that the Office was working on the production of an
Annual Review, to be published in the first half of 2001.
5.
Committee and Chairmen Election Results
The Council noted the results of the committee elections and the elections of
chairmen for the Education, Finance and Establishment, Registration and Standards
Committees.
6.
Co-options
Council approved the following co-options:
3
Education Committee
Professor Rubin
Professor Eric Thomas*
Professor Trowell
Registration Committee
Mrs Clark-Glass
Mr Doven
Mr Slack
Dr Zeegen
Standards Committee
Dr Bharucha
Professor Hilary Thomas
Dr Toynton
* Professor Eric Thomas had been recommended for co-option by the Council of
Heads of Medical Schools.
7.
Elections to fill vacancies on the Committee for Professional
Performance
The Council noted that a postal ballot would be held to fill vacancies for an elected
member and an appointed member on the Committee on Professional Performance.
8.
Report from the Revalidation Steering Group: Progress to Date
and Next Steps
The Council noted progress on the development of revalidation, and agreed to a
series of issue-based seminars for members, to inform the development of the
revalidation model to be considered by Council at the Internal Conference in
February 2001.
The Council endorsed the decision to initiate an economic evaluation of revalidation
and to pilot key elements of revalidation.
The Council agreed that anonymous complaints should not be included in the
revalidation folder.
The Revalidation Steering Group would consider further the proposed health
declaration form. The issues around health declarations would be considered within
members’ seminars.
4
9.
Revalidation: Further Consultation Paper – The Privileges of
Registration
The Council considered a draft consultation paper on the privileges of registration to
be retained by doctors not participating in revalidation; and agreed that a further
draft, taking into account members’ comments should be presented to Council for
approval.
10.
Revalidation: Report on the Outcome of the Consultation Exercise
The Council noted a report on the outcome of the consultation exercise.
11.
Revalidation: Progress on the Development of a Detailed Model
The Council noted the progress made in developing the detailed model for
revalidation.
12.
Report of the Fitness to Practise Policy Committee
The Council agreed:
a.
That the Chairman of the Fitness to Practise Policy Committee should
be elected from among the membership of the Committee and that the
necessary amendments to Standing Orders should be made.
b.
That candidates on the reserve list drawn up following the recruitment
of non-GMC members to serve on PCC panels should be offered
appointments from 1 January 2001.
c.
That, in anticipation of the final report of the PCC case-management
sub-group, work should begin to explore how key objectives identified by the
group could be operationalised.
d.
That non-GMC members should be recruited to serve on CPP panels.
e.
To consider at a future meeting whether the procedure rules should be
amended to provide that hearings of the CPP should normally be in public.
13.
Issues Arising in Relation to the Keeping of a Note of the In Camera
Deliberations of Fitness to Practise Committees
The Council agreed:
a.
That verbatim notes should not be maintained of the
in camera deliberations of any fitness to practise committee or the
Registration Committee and that any necessary rule changes to provide for
this should be made.
b.
That the FPPC should explore other options for monitoring the
work of the fitness to practise committees.
5
14.
Review of Fitness to Practise: The Standard of Proof in Fitness to
Practise Committees
The Council agreed:
a.
That the FPPC should work up a description of broad options for
changes to the fitness to practise procedures, for consideration by Council on
4 December 2000.
b.
That the draft discussion paper prepared by the King’s Fund should be
the vehicle for stimulating discussion at and before the expert conference on
20 December 2000.
c.
To accept the proposed process and provisional timetable for taking
forward this work.
15.
Appointment of Legal Assessors to the Fitness to Practise Committees
The Council:
a.
Agreed that the IOC and the Registration Committee be delegated
authority to appoint a legal assessor if none of those appointed by the Council
is available to sit.
b.
Noted the list of legal assessors’ appointments for specific meetings.
c.
Approved the appointments of Mr Vallance and Mr Mansfield to the
panel of legal assessors.
16.
Fitness to Practise Appointments
The Council agreed:
a.
To approve the appointment of Mr Nicholls as Chairman and
Professor Sir Roddy MacSween as Deputy Chairman of the PPC for the
period 6 November 2000 to 31 December 2001.
b.
To approve the appointment of Professor MacKay as
Deputy Chairman of the IOC for the period 6 November 2000 to
31 December 2001.
17.
Response to the Evaluation Report on the Health Procedures
The Council noted the report.
6
18.
Registration: Work of the Registration Committee
The Council noted a report on the Registration Committee’s activities since
May 2000.
19.
Education: United Examining Board
The Council noted the position following the inspection in April 2000.
20.
Education: Franchising of Undergraduate Medical Education
The Council noted:
a.
The undertaking of the University of Sheffield that graduates admitted
to the Sheffield/Perak programme in or after 2001 will not be awarded primary
medical degrees registrable with the GMC.
b.
That in the light of this undertaking, the GMC had accepted that a
maximum of 99 Sheffield/Perak students, admitted to the course on or before
October 2000 and graduating with Sheffield's MB ChB degree, would be
entitled to provisional and full registration, if they chose to apply for it.
21.
Education: Work since May 2000
The Council noted a report of the activities of the Education Committee since
May 2000.
Mr Shaw had tabled the question:
‘Have the PAC and/or other relevant GMC committees formed a view about the
Government’s intention (set out in paragraph 8.28 of the NHS National Plan) to
abolish both the JCPTGP and the STA?’
The Education Committee had responded positively to the proposal for the Medical
Education Standards Board, which would replace the JCPTGP and STA, and would
ensure that quality assurance issues were kept at the centre of the debate.
22.
Confidentiality
The Council noted a report of a meeting with the UK Association of Cancer
Registries on 7 November 2000.
The Council’s guidance on confidentiality recognised that cancer and other registries
relied on information from patient records for their effectiveness in safeguarding the
public health. The guidance required doctors to seek patients’ consent before
disclosing identifiable data. The guidance, which had been the subject of extensive
consultation, was compatible with the requirements of the Data Protection Act 1998,
the Human Rights Act 1998 and the common law.
7
The current practice was to transfer named data to cancer registers without patients’
consent. Despite representations by the GMC, action had not been taken to deal
with this problem.
In the light of representations from the UK Association of Cancer Registries, the
Council agreed, for the period until October 2001, to take into account, in considering
complaints about disclosure of information to registries, the temporary exceptional
circumstances that may prevent doctors from following the guidance when releasing
information to registries. This would allow the Government to consider whether to
introduce legislation, or for health authorities and trusts to review their systems for
obtaining and recording patients’ consent. In the interim, doctors should make every
effort to ensure that cancer patients were informed about the release of information
to cancer registries.
23.
Withholding and Withdrawing Life-Prolonging Treatments:
Good Practice in Decision Making
The Council discussed draft guidance on the considerations to be taken into account
by doctors when deciding whether to withhold or withdraw life-prolonging treatment
from a patient. The Standards Committee would prepare a further draft, taking into
account members’ comments, undertake consultation, including a conference or
seminar, and report back to Council later in 2001.
24.
Revision of Good Medical Practice
The Council noted the draft of a new edition of
Good Medical Practice, which would
be issued for consultation.
25.
Standards Committee - Work in Progress
The Council noted:
a.
That draft guidance on good practice in medical research would be
published as a consultation document in February 2001.
b.
A statement on obtaining consent to antenatal testing for HIV.
c.
The timetable for drafting and revising existing guidance.
26.
Register of Members’ Interests
The Council agreed that the following interests should be declared:
a.
Posts held in the ordinary course of employment or practice.
b.
Ordinary membership of professional bodies, medical Royal Colleges,
specialist societies, local medical committees or the medical defence
organisations.
8
c.
Fellowships of professional bodies, medical Royal Colleges, or
specialist societies.
d.
Offices held within the GMC.
e.
Any office held in a professional body, specialist society, medical Royal
College or other similar body in the public, private or voluntary sector. Offices
include posts such as President, Chairman, Chief Executive, Treasurer or
Secretary.
f.
Membership of a committee or Council of a professional association,
specialist society, medical Royal College or other similar body.
g.
Membership of, or posts in, local or national community organisations.
h.
Consultancies, directorships, advisory positions if they relate to a
medical, healthcare or pharmaceutical company or organisation, public body
or political party.
i.
Freemasonry (41 votes for; 10 against; 2 abstentions).
j.
Membership of a political party or pressure groups with an interest in
the GMC’s work (39 votes for; 2 against; 3 abstentions).
Dr Borman proposed and Miss Doig seconded the following amendment:
‘To agree that membership of political organisations and pressure groups,
religious affiliations and
organisations similar to Freemasonry should be
declared.’
The amendment was lost.
The Council agreed that the register of interests should be published when members
had had the opportunity to review their entries in the light of the new guidance.
(40 votes for; 1 against; 1 abstention).
The PAC would give further consideration to additional points raised by members,
and bring proposals to the Council.
27.
Report on the Racial Equality Group
The Council noted a report on the progress of, and key issues facing the Racial
Equality Group, including the programme of work in response to the Policy Studies
Institute report on the Fitness to Practise procedures.
9
28.
International Association of Medical Licensing Authorities
The Council noted progress in establishing an International Association of Medical
Licensing Authorities.
29.
President’s Advisory Committee: Work since May 2000
The Council noted a report on the PAC’s work since May 2000.
15 February 2001
Sir Donald Irvine
President
10
Document Outline