GMC was wrong to release report on GP’s competence to patient, rules judge

A High Court judge has ruled that a decision by the UK General Medical Council to release an expert report on a GP’s competence to the patient who complained about him was unlawful.

The patient, who had been given a diagnosis of bladder cancer, complained to the regulator about the GP, named only as DB. He claimed that his illness would have been recognised a year earlier had the doctor been doing his job properly.

The GMC commissioned a report from an expert, who decided that DB had fallen below the expected standard, “but not seriously below.” The expert concluded that most reasonably competent GPs would not have suspected …