MPs on the health select committee heard this week that the revalidation process remained a top priority for the GMC, and that it would start as planned subject to final approval from health secretary Jeremy Hunt later this month or in October.
The GMC will give doctors a minimum of three months’ notice of when they can expect to undergo regular checks on their skills and performance. The regulator will start by inspecting ‘responsible officers’, followed by other licensed doctors.
GMC chairman Professor Sir Peter Rubin said: ‘All of the information we have had from around the UK gives me great confidence that we are now in a position to start revalidation.’
Professor Rubin and GMC chief executive Niall Dickson outlined actions the regulator was taking to support doctors in their work.
This included providing new guidance on child protection, introducing a confidential helpline which doctors could call if they wanted to raise concerns about patient safety, and trialing a national induction programme for doctors new to UK medical practice.
The GMC has also launched an employer-liaison service that involves 15 advisers supporting medical managers in the introduction of revalidation.
