The Law Commission has published a review of the Regulation of Health Care Professionals. It proposes bringing the regulation of all healthcare and social care professionals into line with each other. The regulation of pharmacists already meets most of the requirements that would be imposed on healthcare professions, but there could be some new features:
- There could be a paramount duty either to protect, promote and maintain the health, safety and well-being of the public by ensuring proper standards for safe and effective practice, or to protect, promote and maintain the health, safety and wellbeing of the public and maintain confidence in the profession, by ensuring proper standards for safe and effective practice.
- There could be compulsory registration for students
- A review of protected titles - is it time to give "pharmacist" and "pharmacy" greater protection than "chemist", rather than the other way round?
- The GPhC's Standards may have to have a first tier - guidance that must be complied with; and a second tier - guidance that must be taken into account and given due weight.
- The test of impairment of fitness to practise may be changed, for example to determine whether a pharmacist is a risk to the health, safety and well-being of the public (and whether confidence in the profession has been or will be undermined)
- The GPhC could investigate any information, rather than just acting on formal complaints
- The GPhC's Investigating Committee could have power to dispose of cases by accepting voluntary removal from the Register
- The GPhC would have to review decisions of the Investigating Committee not to refer a case to a Fitness to Practise Committee
- Possible financial penalties
To see David Reissner's submissions to the Law Commission, click here.
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