The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) is the adjudication body responsible for making decisions on doctors’ fitness to practice in the UK. The MPTS was established in 2012 and is funded by but independent of the General Medical Council (GMC). The site has information for doctors and witnesses attending hearings. Full text decisions of the MPTS are provided along with guidance and relevant legislation.
The British Medical Association (BMA) is the doctors’ professional organisation, representing doctors across all branches of medicine in the UK. The ‘Equality and Diversity’ section introduces the Equality Act 2010 and contains a short guide to the changes introduced by the Act. The ‘Medical Ethics’ section provides a range of guidance for doctors including ‘toolkits’, available in PDF, offering ethical guidance to doctors in areas such as child protection and the Mental Capacity Act. This section also contains a range of BMA publications, also in PDF format.
The General Medical Council (GMC) registers doctors to practise medicine in the UK. The ‘Registration and licensing’ section of the website allows users to search the List of Registered Medical Practitioners, a list of general practitioners eligible to work for the UK health service. It includes any publicly available fitness to practise history since 20 October 2005. There is a separate search facility for recent fitness to practise decisions. The ‘About us’ section provides links to relevant legislation, including a consolidated version with amendments of the Medical Act 1983.
The Shipman Inquiry was an independent public inquiry that began work in February 2001 under the chairmanship of Dame Janet Smith DBE. The Inquiry looked into the deaths of former patients of Harold Shipman and examined the systems and procedures in place. The website provides background information and documentation from the case, as well as details of the Inquiry team, ministerial statements and terms of reference. The site has transcripts of procedural meetings, witness statements, all the Inquiry reports and other documents.
The Primary Health Lists Tribunal has superseded the former Family Health Services Appeal Authority. It hears appeals by general medical practitioners, dentists, chemists and opticians against decisions taken by Primary Care Trusts relating to their lists of "medical performers". Its pages on the HM Courts and Tribuanl Service website give an overview of its role and provide rules and legislation, details of forthcoming cases and a link to decisions back to 2004.
