Who's who of appraisal and revalidation - where to go when you need help

You will be provided with an appraiser whose job it is to review your supporting information, facilitate an appraisal discussion with you, and with input from you, submit an appraisal summary and PDP to your responsible officer.

Appraisers do not have the authority to decide your revalidation recommendation. Their role is to facilitate your reflection, support and stimulate your development and help you present an appropriate portfolio of supporting information for your responsible officer to consider.

The main purpose of appraisal is to be supportive and focus on your personal and professional development. It should not feel like a burden or a pass or fail event.

There is no requirement for you to have your appraisal with someone who has experience of your setting. The scope of work of general practitioners is so broad that it would be impossible to match the experience and backgrounds of all appraisers and appraisees. There is good evidence that GPs value having an appraisal with someone from outside their own setting because of the objectivity that this allows and the perception of being able to speak in confidence.

For your appraisal to be valuable to you and to your patients, the training and support for the medical appraiser must give them sufficient credibility to appraise your whole scope of practice. You are entitled to request a reallocation if you do not find your appraiser credible as there is good evidence that appropriate rapport is essential to a productive appraisal discussion. The process of allocating and changing appraisers varies across the UK, so check with your designated body if you're not sure.

Appraisal leads or senior appraisers work with appraisers and responsible officers to ensure appraisals are carried out in a supportive and reflective way, while adhering to revalidation requirements and organisational regulations. You may have cause to contact your senior appraiser or appraisal lead if you have any concerns about your appraisal or appraiser, or if there are any concerns raised about your practice which your appraiser would like support with.

All GPs should be connected to a responsible officer (RO). They will make the revalidation recommendation to the GMC every five years (usually) based on the information your appraisers share with them as well as any other relevant information about your practice. They are responsible for ensuring that any doctor connected to them is up to date and fit to practise and it is their job to ensure you have access to annual appraisals. That doesn't mean they have to make sure you have an appraisal - that is your responsibility.

If you think that you should be offered an appraisal and you are not, be proactive about seeking advice from your designated body and ensuring that you are included in the appraisal process. Administrative errors do happen, and you are best placed to highlight such omissions.

Your RO also has the authority to defer a revalidation recommendation if you haven't had a chance to collect all the required supporting information, or to postpone or approve a missed appraisal if you are out of practice for a significant length of time.

Whenever you have a concern about your appraisal or revalidation it's always a good idea to have a conversation with your appraiser, or the appraisal and revalidation team in your area as early as possible.

The GMC sets the standards for all medical professionals practising in the UK. If the GMC feels that you are not meeting those standards, they have the authority to investigate and act where needed.

The GMC outlines the requirements needed for appraisal for revalidation. The GMC will receive a revalidation recommendation from your RO every five years and will make the revalidation decision as to whether to renew your licence to practise.

The GMC provides the overarching guidance on supporting information for revalidation for all doctors.

While we are not directly involved in the management or regulation of appraisal and revalidation, we have produced guidance and support to help you make the most of the appraisal experience. The Professional Standards team is available to support you and help you find the answers you need.

If you can't find what you need from our website, please do contact the team at professionalstandards@rcgp.org.uk.

Your designated body will facilitate the revalidation process for you and provide you with a responsible officer. If you're not sure which designated body is yours, or who your RO is, the GMC website has these details. They have an online tool to help you find your designated body and a list of all designated bodies (external PDF) with the RO connected to them and an email address where you can contact them.

If at least some of your work is with the NHS (either NHS England, Health Boards in Scotland and Wales, or Health and Social Care Trusts in Northern Ireland) then that organisation is likely to be your designated body. For locum GPs, your designated body may be the agency which provides your locum sessions.

Most GPs are connected to a responsible officer who will manage the appraisal and revalidation process for them and make a revalidation recommendation to the GMC on their behalf. For the few who don't, the GMC has licenced a number of doctors to act as a Suitable Person approved to make a revalidation recommendation for a doctor.

You can find the list of approved suitable persons (external PDF) on the GMC website.