FAQ: Timecales and Rollout

 

I was granted my licence to practise in November 2009. When will it expire?

Your licence does not have a set expiry date. However, if you have a licence to practise you will be required to participate in revalidation once implemented. How soon you will be called for revalidation will depend upon the way in which the GMC implements the roll out of revalidation (see questions and answers below).

 

 

What are the timescales for introducing revalidation?

There will be a phased approach to introducing revalidation. This will mean starting where the local systems needed to support revalidation are ready and fit for purpose. The health departments in each of the four countries are taking responsibility for ensuring that local processes are ready to support revalidation across all sectors. They are leading on testing and piloting the various elements involved in the process and in assessing whether organisations in their areas have systems in place to support doctors through the process.

 

We expect the process to start in late 2012 with the first recommendations being made in 2013.

 

In Spring 2012 the GMC will ask all doctors for information about where they work. This is because, for the purposes of revalidation, doctors will link to the GMC through one organisation and they need to know which organisation this is.

At the end of 2012 the first doctors will be told when they will revalidate, and over the next few years, it is expected that every licensed doctor will be revalidated for the first time.

 

If the first revalidations are going to begin around 2012 or early 2013, does this mean they will not initially be based on five years' supporting information of practice?

That is correct. The recommendations in the introductory cycle are not expected to be based on five years worth of supporting information. However, we understand that doctors who are revalidated in the introductory cycle will be required to provide a full range of supporting information, although not necessarily in the same quantity as when revalidation is fully established. We are waiting for confirmation in this area from the GMC.

 

 

What notice will I be given that my revalidation is due?

You will receive ample notice from your Responsible Officer that your revalidation is due. However, it is important to remember that revalidation is a five year process, not a fifth year process. So it is important that you are collecting supporting information about your practice and participating in appraisal throughout this period. Don't wait until the last minute.

 

What if I don’t have a Responsible Officer?

The GMC is aware that a small number of UK-licenced doctors don’t currently have a connection to a Responsible Officer. Work is underway to address this issue and the GMC plan to write to all UK-licenced doctors next year to identify those who do not have a Responsible Officer.

 

I thought that the GMC was going to decide everyone's revalidation date based on their GMC reference number. Is that still the case? If not, why not?

This was the original proposal by the GMC. However, this approach relies on local systems of clinical governance and appraisal being in place and functioning effectively across the UK. Proceeding with this approach would risk some doctors struggling to meet the requirements of revalidation, not because there were problems with their fitness to practise, but because the systems within which they were working were not sufficiently mature to support their revalidation. This would be unfair.

 

Although the process is still being developed, the GMC are therefore proposing to take a phased and incremental approach, starting revalidation where systems are strong and able to support doctors in affirming that they are meeting the required standards.

 

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