GOC urged to consider patient's perspective

The GOC needs to give patients access to precise details of conditions imposed on registrants and do more work on gaining patients' perspectives, the Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence (CHRE) has recommended.

The comments came in a CHRE report which praised the Council for successfully meeting the required standards of performance for health profession regulators.

The CHRE, which annually assesses the work of health profession regulators, including the GOC, said it would like the Council to consider implementing several recommendations. As a priority the GOC register, which enables the general public to check an individual's registration, should show the conditions imposed by fitness to practise panels alongside the registrant's record. The current system only indicates that conditions have been imposed, not what they are.