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PACA welcomes the resignation of Mrs Penny Mellor from the expert
group set up by the GMC to review doctors' conduct in child protection
matters.
Mrs Mellor has led a long-standing campaign against professionals who
take a lead in complex and life-threatening child abuse, including
paediatricians and pathologists. She has
spun a series of false allegations that have impacted on the lives of
professionals, as well as the resources of the GMC.
PACA's original complaint regarding Mrs Mellor's inclusion in the
group was published on 15th July. Niall Dickson, Chief Executive of the
GMC, chose not to respond publicly, but in a belated response to PACA of
24th August, he chose to ignore not only Mrs Mellor's responsibility for the campaign referred to above but also that
she had been severely criticised by a judge when convicted of conspiring
to abduct a child from the jurisdiction of the court.
We expect the GMC to comply with their statement that they seek the
"views from all groups who are affected by GMC guidance": that is, the
children, who have been affected by abuse and by other child protection
agencies such as the police and teachers. In this way, future progress of
this group will hopefully lead to a productive outcome and be accompanied
by an increased willingness of professionals to engage in child protection
work.
The GMC have done much to discourage doctors' involvement in the last
10 years - it is within their remit to change this for the benefit of
vulnerable children.
Competing interests:
I am chair of Professionals Against Child Abuse
Mrs Mellor's resignation from the GMC Expert Group on Child Protection
PACA welcomes the resignation of Mrs Penny Mellor from the expert
group set up by the GMC to review doctors' conduct in child protection
matters.
Mrs Mellor has led a long-standing campaign against professionals who
take a lead in complex and life-threatening child abuse, including
paediatricians and pathologists. She has
spun a series of false allegations that have impacted on the lives of
professionals, as well as the resources of the GMC.
PACA's original complaint regarding Mrs Mellor's inclusion in the
group was published on 15th July. Niall Dickson, Chief Executive of the
GMC, chose not to respond publicly, but in a belated response to PACA of
24th August, he chose to ignore not only Mrs Mellor's responsibility for the campaign referred to above but also that
she had been severely criticised by a judge when convicted of conspiring
to abduct a child from the jurisdiction of the court.
We expect the GMC to comply with their statement that they seek the
"views from all groups who are affected by GMC guidance": that is, the
children, who have been affected by abuse and by other child protection
agencies such as the police and teachers. In this way, future progress of
this group will hopefully lead to a productive outcome and be accompanied
by an increased willingness of professionals to engage in child protection
work.
The GMC have done much to discourage doctors' involvement in the last
10 years - it is within their remit to change this for the benefit of
vulnerable children.
Competing interests: I am chair of Professionals Against Child Abuse