When a doctor does go wrong he is the first of criminals. He has nerve and he has knowledge. - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
It does baffle me sometimes how there are people in positions of power that will abuse the trust that is placed in them. Politicians, police and solicitors are just some of those we look to when we need help of a serious nature. So it was with some shock to see how there are doctors out there that can betray trust true, yet still keep their jobs.
A story, that is doing the rounds in the English newspapers this morning, tells of eleven doctors that have been convicted of paedophile and sex offences have been allowed to stay working in the NHS.
The General Medical Council (GMC) has imposed conditions on six of them but five are free to treat patients unsupervised, according to figures released under the Freedom of Information Act. The GMC can not strike off these doctors because it would contravene their human rights.
The GMC does not have access to a comprehensive list of individuals who are subject to reporting requirements in relation to the Sex Offenders Act. There are arrangements in place to ensure that the police notify us of criminal convictions…Police forces inform the GMC when a doctor is charged, cautioned or convicted. Doctors are also required to inform the GMC directly.
Statement from The General Medical Council of Britain.
To me this seems ludicrous, millions of people everyday go to see their doctor and expect to be getting the best treatment from the most qualified professionals available. To find out that not only are those professionals convicted of a crime of abuse is bad enough but to know that they can still freely work in and around a community without such as a murmur from their authority is absolutely amazing to me.
How are we supposed to put our faith in authority, if they do not even know who exactly it is that is working for them? Have they done any serious background checks or just because there’s a diploma on a wall (hey, my grandmother could make up one of those if I gave her my laptop!) in an office?
People need to feel safe and secure with the person we put in charge of our medical problems. It is a personal issue and in the majority of the cases we do not give our privacy over lightly to be scrutinised in order to cure us of whatever ails us.
Sometimes it is not just about money and maybe that’s what needs to change.
Monday, September 24th, 2007 and is filed under Thoughts & Questions, Views on News.
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