Fitness to Practise Flashcards
What are the Fitness to Practise procedures?
- Understanding limitations
- Standards need to be met at all times
- Necessary knowledge
- Necessary character
- Necessary skills
- Necessary health
What is fitness to practise?
-Having the right to be registered on the GPHC, practising as a trusted pharmacist. Pharmacists can only be registered if the GPHC are satisfied that the student/ pharmacist etc meets the education and training requirements as well as being fit to practise.
How often is fitness to practise reviewed?
-It is reviewed annually
What do you do if an incident takes place, or anything changes regarding your fitness to practise before your annual review?
- You have to declare any changes or incidents within 7 days of it taking place as well as completing revalidation records. If not, this will demonstrate lack of character/ professionalism.
What is a Revalidation record ? and when is it required?
-Records that pharmacists are required to complete around the same time as they renew their registration. Its in order to keep their knowledge and skills, reflecting on how to improve.
All of these fitness to practise procedures come under what?
-The Legislation of the Pharmacy Order, 2010
What can trigger fitness to practise?
-Wrongdoing
-Serious, un-professional/inappropriate behaviour
-Dishonesty
-Fraud
-Working under the influence of drink/drugs
What are the stages when action is taken regarding fitness to practise?
Stage 1- Concern received
Stage 2- Initial inquiries and investigation
Stage 3-Investigating committee
Stage 4-Fitness to practise committee
What is, Stage 1- Concern received?
-GPhC initial review where they may close the case/pass it on to another regulator or agency/ begin an investigation
What is Stage 2- Initial inquiries and investigation ?
-Visiting the site, speaking to members of the pharmacy team, members of the public, identifying witnesses. They need to establish the facts in order to move forward with the case
-Interim orders also take place, allow for a pharmacy professionals registration to be suspended while they investigate further.
How long can the investigation for fitness to practise take?
-aim to complete investigations within 3-9 months. Interim orders also take place, allow for a pharmacy professionals registration to be suspended while they investigate further.
What is Stage 3- Investigating the committee ?
-The outcomes include, taking no action, give advice, issue a warning, agree ‘undertakings’, refer to an FtPC
What is Stage 4-Fitness to practise committee
-The chair, a registration member and a lay member will hold a hearing in public. The meeting will be minuted, the idea that it is transparent. Here they investigate the ‘balance of probabilities’ -evidence. When the decision is made by the fitness to practise committee it is called a ‘determination’
What can be the outcomes of a fitness to practise investigation?
- taking no action
- advice
- agree ‘undertakings’
- issue a warning
- impose conditions on practise
- suspend from practise
- remove from the register
When can the registra refer a fitness to practise case to the IC?
- This is the threshold criteria where the registra should not refer a case to the IC unless evidence as a whole suggests that conduct, performance is a potential risk to patient or public.
