Update
Violence against junior doctors going unreported
Junior doctors are most likely to fall victim to or experience a physical or verbal attack, according to the BMA. The results were revealed in a survey of more than 550 doctors last year. One in three doctors experienced violence last year, and more than half say it is a problem in the work place. Most of the doctors who suffered violence had not reported the incident, which the BMA says suggests a degree of under-reporting. According to the respondents, the main catalyst for workplace violence was dissatisfaction with the service, including frustration with long waiting times and refusal to prescribe medicines.
BMA Chairman Dr Hamish Meldrum described the figures as “worrying” and repeated calls for a “zero tolerance approach” to violence against NHS staff. Other results showed:
- Female doctors are more likely to experience violence in the workplace than males (37% compared to 27%)
- Doctors have not received any training in dealing with violent patients
- Almost two thirds of psychiatrists report that violence in their workplace is a problem, compared with a fifth of surgeons
- Only one in ten doctors has access to a secure facility in which to treat violent patients.
Junior doctors lose free accommodation
Junior doctors are campaigning for the reintroduction of the right to free accommodation, following amendments to the Medical Act 1983. Legislation came into effect last August that removed the obligation for hospitals to employ FY1 doctors on a residential basis. Cambridge finalist Sam Gluck launched a campaign on social networking site Facebook to reintroduce free accommodation. It is now an official petition that will be presented to 10 Downing Street in March.
The Department of Health admitted to being “unaware” that junior doctors would lose this entitlement, but still carried the legislation through. The BMA subsequently called for an increase in pay for FY1s, on the basis that the DH had always refused increasing basic salary because doctors received subsidised accommodation.
Tooke report strips DH’s role
Postgraduate medical training will be transformed if Sir John Tooke’s proposals are carried forward. His final report on Modernising Medical Careers was published in January and proposes stripping the Department of Health of its responsibility for running doctors’ training, by creating a new body to co-ordinate all postgraduate medical training in England. Sir John described the existing system as an "inflexible structure” that does not encourage excellence and argued that “although the original principles of MMC were well conceived, they were lost in translation”.
Dr Chris McCullough, from the junior doctor pressure group Remedy, welcomed the report and said it was effectively a vote of no confidence in the government’s system. The junior doctor recruitment fiasco last year, and the perceived failure of MTAS, prompted an independent inquiry by Sir John Tooke into MMC. His final report recommends that the two-tier system be reduced to one foundation year, and training thereafter should consist of three years of core medical training, before reaching higher speciality training (CCT). Following the report, the DH says it will now assess howit shall proceed and alter the system for 2009.
Casting a legal eye – legislation on the way…
- Health and Social Care Bill – The Regulation of Healthcare Professionals in the 21st Century
- Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act
- Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007
- NHS Redress (Wales) Measure 2007
- Public Health Bill – Scotland
- Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill
GMC lets standards slide
From April this year the GMC will apply the civil standard of proof in all fitness-to-practise (FTP) cases. The GMC council voted to amend the FTP rules, despite arguments put forward by various medical organisations, including the BMA and MPS. Both organisations were concerned about the impact of changing the standard of proof on doctors’ livelihoods.
Their concern was reflected in a consultation document, where more than half of the doctors who responded opposed the introduction of the civil standard. Read more about why MPS opposes the introduction of the standard in Soapbox.
Specialist trainig posts limited
Figures released by the DH suggest that competition will be tough for specialist places this year. Mr Ram Moorthy, chairman of the BMA Junior Doctors Committee, said it is going to be a “very difficult process” and pledged the BMA’s support over the coming months. The figures revealed that there will be between 8,300 and 8,600 specialist training posts in England and around three times as many applicants.
Doctor cleared of turning off machines to test trainees
A Liverpool anaesthetist who switched off equipment during surgery to test junior doctors’ training was cleared of misconduct. Dr James Murphy told his junior colleagues he was going for a coffee break to see if they would spot a “deliberate mistake”. The patient suffered no harm and he was cleared without sanctions.
Soaring costs incurred by juniors
The cost of being a junior doctor has increased by 80%, according to the BMA – yet basic salaries have only increased by 20%. The research looked at the minimum essential costs borne by junior doctors, including compulsory membership of organisations like the GMC, which have more than doubled for a second year. It did not take into account the cost of training and additional exams.