BMJ  2005;331 (30 July), doi:10.1136/bmj.331.7511.0-g

Editor's choice

The GMC: out of its depth?

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Mention the General Medical Council (GMC) to a group of UK doctors at the moment and you must be ready for anger and despondency. The view, widely held among doctors, that the verdict on Roy Meadow was disproportionate and inappropriate may be the opening gambit, but the conversation soon turns to the GMC itself. What I hear from a growing number of doctors who have been referred to the GMC are troubling accounts of officiousness, inefficiency, and delay; of prolonged and painful pursuit of cases that are subsequently found to have no grounds. What I hear from others is loss of faith in the GMC's abilities to manage its affairs, with damage to patients and doctors alike. This week's BMJ draws attention to the problem of underinvestigation of research fraud (pp 245, 281, 288). Should we now be talking about the problem of overinvestigation of doctors?

The . . . [Full text of this article]

Fiona Godlee, editor

(fgodlee@bmj.com)


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Rapid Responses:

Read all Rapid Responses

"Downward spiral of...confidence in the profession"
Jay Ilangaratne
bmj.com, 29 Jul 2005 [Full text]
The quality of mercy
John Stone
bmj.com, 29 Jul 2005 [Full text]
A very welcome editorial
Peter Gooderham
bmj.com, 29 Jul 2005 [Full text]
GMC was correct in the Roy Meadow case
Malcolm E Kendrick
bmj.com, 29 Jul 2005 [Full text]
GMC Leadership
Brian D Keighley
bmj.com, 29 Jul 2005 [Full text]
GMC is trying hard
John A Garner
bmj.com, 29 Jul 2005 [Full text]
GMC Responds
Finlay Scott
bmj.com, 29 Jul 2005 [Full text]
Out of its depth and totally submerged
Philip G Griffiths
bmj.com, 30 Jul 2005 [Full text]
Guilty until proven innocent.
Kayvan Shokrollahi
bmj.com, 30 Jul 2005 [Full text]
Re: "Downward spiral of...confidence in the profession":postscript
Jay Ilangaratne
bmj.com, 30 Jul 2005 [Full text]
Sorry for the GMC
Mark Struthers
bmj.com, 30 Jul 2005 [Full text]
Re: Out of its depth and totally submerged
C Frank Lockyer
bmj.com, 31 Jul 2005 [Full text]
overinvestigation and overacting
Peter Bruggen
bmj.com, 2 Aug 2005 [Full text]
Re: A very welcome editorial
Finlay Scott
bmj.com, 2 Aug 2005 [Full text]
If it's raining cats and dogs there, here it never stops raining
Dr. Emilio Polo Ledezma
bmj.com, 4 Aug 2005 [Full text]
Does the GMC act justly?
Anne F Travers, et al.
bmj.com, 15 Aug 2005 [Full text]
Re: Does the GMC act justly?
Jay Ilangaratne
bmj.com, 17 Aug 2005 [Full text]
Oh dear, and then we get to revalidation
Oliver R Dearlove
bmj.com, 19 Aug 2005 [Full text]
Re: Oh dear, and then we get to revalidation
Jay Ilangaratne
bmj.com, 20 Aug 2005 [Full text]
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