THE GUARDIAN

Debbie Andalo
Thursday December 9, 2004

The General Medical Council (GMC), which disciplines doctors, was criticised today for "looking after their own" by the chairwoman of the inquiry into the serial killer GP Harold Shipman.

Dame Janet Smith said doctors should lose their majority control of the council, which had "fundamental flaws" and had failed to protect patients from rogue doctors.

In her fifth inquiry report, published this morning, she recommended that patients should have the right to refuse to be treated by a doctor if they have been previously suspended or struck from the register.

Dame Janet, who is a high court judge, said she was sceptical that recent reforms to the GMC to make it more accountable and transparent had made any difference.

She criticised the GMC for not going far enough in its reforms since Shipman, a GP in Hyde, Greater Manchester, was convicted of killing 15 patients in January 2000. She said the council had been "too reactive", only taking action after medical scandals came to light.

She said: "I am by no means convinced that the new GMC procedures will adequately protect patients from dysfunctional or underperforming doctors."

The 1,300-page report lists more than 100 recommendations for change. These include:

· increasing the number of lay members of the GMC to a majority and reviewing its constitution;
· the GMC should be accountable to parliament;
· introducing a 'rolling review' of every doctors' fitness to practise;
· a database containing information about every doctor working in the UK which would include any disciplinary action - this database would be accessible to the NHS, GMC and the Department of Health;
· patients should have access to information about a doctor's registration status and past fitness to practise;
· patients can refuse to be treated by a doctor whose practice is subject to conditions or who has been subject of an order to be struck or suspended from the register to practice

Speaking earlier this year, the GMC's chief executive, Finlay Scott, admitted that the organisation had made mistakes in the past.

He said in July that cases had been dropped that warranted further action, which would have been taken had better procedures been in place. He said then: "The GMC of today should not be judged by the GMC of the past.

"We can be confident in the policies adopted by council, and in our ability to complete the transformation on which we have embarked."

The inquiry was set up in September 2000 after Shipman was sentenced to life in February that year.

The inquiry has considered Shipman's activities but also looked at the actions of medical bodies and authorities during his lengthy killing spree which is thought to have spanned 23 years and included the murder of at least 215 patients by lethal morphine injection.

The inquiry has taken 2,500 witness statements, and over 100,000 pages of evidence had been scanned into its database.

Shipman was found hanged in Wakefield Prison in January this year.

Six doctors who signed cremation forms for Dr Shipman's patients are currently facing GMC disciplinary proceedings for serious professional misconduct.

The health secretary, John Reid was expected to respond to the inquiry report around lunchtime. 

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