GDC ‘worst health regulator in UK’

Professional Standards Authority places body at the bottom of a list of nine

28 July, 2015 / infocus
 

The BDA has expressed its alarm at a report into the performance of the GDC that puts the organisation bottom of a league of nine healthcare regulators.

The Professional Standards Authority (PSA) published its findings last month and revealed that the GDC failed to meet a total of seven of its standards of good regulation.

On Fitness to Practise, the GDC fully met only one of the 10 standards, and failed to meet six others, representing what the PSA described as a significant decline in its performance compared to an assessment it carried out in 2013/14.

BDA Chair, Mick Armstrong, said: “Yet again, GDC registrants must acknowledge that they are being regulated by the worst health regulator in the UK. It is difficult to understand how badly the GDC has to perform before someone actually intervenes.”

However, the GDC mounted a staunch defence of its performance, claiming that a major change programme is delivering real improvements in the protection of dental patients.

In a statement, the GDC said that the PSA report confirmed that in the areas of guidance and standards, education and training, and registration, the GDC is performing well.

The GDC said: “The PSA has reported on data collected between September 2013 and September 2014, which confirms what was already known, namely, that in this period the GDC was faced with an increased number of complaints and a significant pressure on resources.

“The transformation programme we have put in place is already yielding results in this area and we are confident that it will continue to deliver improved performance.”

GDC Chief Executive and Registrar, Evlynne Gilvarry (pictured), said: “The GDC has set out a clear vision that puts the patient at the heart of its work. The PSA report recognises much of the excellent work being done by the GDC on a daily basis. We are not complacent, however, and are fully focused on the need to see through our current reforms and deliver improvements in the area of Fitness to Practise.

Tags: BDA / Evlynne Gilvarry / Fitness to Practise / GDC performance / PSA

Categories: News

Comments are closed here.

Scottish Dental magazine