10. Professions and Professionalisation Flashcards
What is a profession?
A type of occupation able to make distinctive claims about its work practices and status.
What is a profesional?
A member of a profession.
What is professionalisation?
The social and historical process that results in an occupation becoming a profession.
What were the steps in professionalisation of medicine?
Made exclusive claims over a body of knowledge - only catered for wealthy originally.
Established control over market and excluded competition - like taking over care for women in childbirth from other women.
Established control over professional work practice - GMC formed in 1858 to self-regulate.
What is professional socialisation?
Process of new entrants acquiring professional identities based on formal curriculum and informal curriculum.
How are formal and informal curriculum assessed in professional socialisation?
Formal - knowledge tested through exams.
Informal - attitudes and beliefs, performance notes not formally examined.
What does self-regulation claim?
There is an unusual degree of skill and knowledge involved in professional work meaning non-professions are not equipped to evaluate or regulate it.
What are the criticisms of self-regulation?
Self-serving, favours interests of agents over principals, bad apple enquiries like Bristol enquiry, rules on professional propriety meaning doctors don’t raise concerns, control is informal.
What is the role of the GMC?
To protect patients.
What happened in regulation after the end of self-regulation?
GMC now has a mix of lay and professional members, all appointed independently - overseen by the council for healthcare regulatory excellence.
What happens in concerns about fitness to practice?
The doctor is referred to the GMC but they can be overruled in these matters by the council for healthcare regulatory excellence.
What is the current licensing system?
Every 5 years, doctors have to have their licence revalidated.
