What is the General Medical Council (GMC)? UK

Main Category: Public Health
Article Date: 11 Dec 2004 - 23:00 PDT


The GMC, UK, is the regulator of the medical profession. Our purpose is to protect, promote and maintain the health and safety of the community by ensuring proper standards in the practice of medicine. Following legislation in 2002, we are implementing the most comprehensive and wide-ranging reform of medical regulation since the GMC was established in 1858.

We have strong and effective legal powers designed to maintain the standards the public have a right to expect of doctors. We are not here to protect the medical profession - their interests are protected by others. Our job is to protect patients.

The public trust doctors to set and monitor their own professional standards. In return doctors must give their patients high-quality medical care. Where any doctor fails to meet those standards, we act to protect patients from harm - if necessary, by striking the doctor off the register and removing their right to practise medicine.

Our legal authority is the Medical Act, which gives us powers to protect, promote and maintain the health and safety of the public.

We are also a charity (registration number 1089278) whose purpose is the protection, promotion and maintenance of the health and safety of the community.

How are we made up?

Our governing body, the Council, has 35 members:

-- 19 doctors elected by the doctors on the register

-- 14 members of the public appointed by the Privy Council

-- 2 academics appointed by educational bodies - the universities and medical royal colleges
http://www.gmcpressoffice.org.uk

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