The GMC has announced that it will make initial contact with doctors by phone if they need to investigate concerns. The change is part of a series of improvements by the GMC to take a more compassionate approach to reduce the impact of investigations and the anxiety for doctors.

In recent years the GMC has made a number of changes to the way it conducts investigations and communicates with doctors, following recommendations from a leading mental health expert.

The GMC and the Chief Medical Officers also wrote to doctors in November to reassure them that if a concern is raised about a doctor’s practice, it will always consider the circumstances and any relevant context involved when deciding whether an investigation needs to be taken forward.

More information is available on the GMC website here.

Read GMC Chair Professor Dame Carrie MacEwen’s message to the profession emphasising her, and the GMC’s focus on enabling cultures that allow everyone to thrive here.

Read the GMC and Chief Medical officers Joint letter to doctors here.