The General Medical Council (GMC) has dismissed a decision by the British Medical Association' (BMA) to take legal action over the use of the term 'medical professional' as "not even arguable".
The GMC has used the term 'medical professionals' to describe all its future registrants, regardless of whether they are doctors or associates. The BMA recently launched a judicial review claim against the GMC over its use of this label, which the association said should only ever be used to refer to qualified doctors.
It took the step to stop the "dangerous blurring of the lines" between skilled and trained doctors and the medical associate professions (MAPs), it claimed that action was needed before the "uncontrolled experiment" of the use of MAPs "leads to more unintended patient harm". At the BMA's annual representative meeting, council chair Professor Philip Banfield said the Association would not stand for the government and NHS leadership "eroding" the profession any further.
But in a statement on Tuesday, the GMC said: "We have responded to the BMA today, strongly rejecting the basis on which they have threatened to bring legal proceedings. We believe the grounds for the threatened judicial review are not even arguable."
Regulation Needed But Not by GMC
The legal move comes in the wake of recent legislation which will see the GMC take responsibility for regulating physician associates (PAs) and anaesthesia associates (AAs) from December 2024.
The BMA has argued that both professions – who complete a 2-year course rather than a 5-year medical degree – need regulating, but that the GMC is not the right organisation to do it.
Alongside the BMA, Anaesthetists United, an independent group of grassroots anaesthetists, is planning separate but complementary legal action, which relates to the lack of any national regulation of scope of practice for PAs and AAs.
In a statement on Tuesday, the GMC said: "We have extensively and formally consulted with the BMA over several years in relation to the core standards to be set for PAs and AAs." The regulator pointed out that since 2021 it had made the BMA and others aware of its intention to apply its core professional standards to doctors, PAs, and AAs, "and received no objections from them at all".
Earlier this year, the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) UK governing Council meeting raised concerns that regulation by the GMC of PAs risked confusing patients in distinguishing between doctors and PAs. Subsequently, the College said that another regulatory body would be a more appropriate regulator.
Last month, the RCGP called for a halt to recruitment of physician associates in general practice. It came after a consultation with more than 5000 GPs. In March this year, members and fellows of the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) voted overwhelmingly to limit the pace and scale of the rollout of PAs.
Doctors Are The Medical Profession
MAPs have been under increased scrutiny following the case of Emily Chesterton, who was twice misdiagnosed by a PA before eventually dying of a blood clot in 2022.
"PAs are not doctors, and we have seen the tragic consequences of what happens when this is not made clear to patients," Banfield said. "Everyone has the right to know who the healthcare professional they are seeing is and what they are qualified to do – and crucially, not to do."
Emphasising that doctors are "the medical profession", he said that describing any other staff as medical professionals risked undermining the skills of trained doctors and confusing patients.
However, the GMC stated that the term 'medical professionals' "is not a protected title, and our use of it is both lawful and appropriate".
It said: "We have made it very clear we will recognise and regulate doctors, PAs, and AAs as three distinct professions. To register with us, PAs and AAs will also need to show that they have the knowledge, skills, and experience to treat patients safely, and that there are no outstanding concerns about their fitness to practise."
