As a collective whole, doctors are regarded as “professionals” both by the public and by their peers. They remain the most trusted profession among the public, which has been the case for many years. Individually, some doctors may fall short of the mark. But what do we mean by professionalism? And how much bearing does this definition have on the behaviours expected of a doctor? Firstly, we need to be clear about exactly what a profession is.

If you are unsure about a prescription, or mishear on a ward round, always seek clarification, never guess

Any doctor who specialises in a particular field would be expected to keep up-todate in that area. This would apply to all fields of medicine. Surgeons with a special interest would be expected to keep up-to-date with developments both in the field of general surgery and their area of special interest.

Sometimes, when an adverse incident occurs, the GMC can take action if a doctor’s fitness to practise is called into question, which could be due to:

It is one of the great ironies that healthcare professionals are, generally, poor at taking care of their own health. Yet it is one of the core set of guidelines in Good Medical Practice that you have a responsibility to look after your health - if not for your own sake, then at least for your patients.

Honesty and integrity are central to probity and define how any professional person should act: being upstanding and law-abiding, and respectful of the trust placed in you by others.

It is perhaps an understatement to say that teamwork is integral to the safe delivery of care within medicine, and the professional approach to good teamwork centres on good communication, mutual respect for others and proactively responding to any deficiencies in the team.

The GMC and the doctor in question are both invited to attend. The GMC is normally represented at the hearing by a barrister and the doctor is usually present and legally represented. Both parties may call witnesses to give evidence, who may be crossexamined by the other party. The Panel may also put questions to the witnesses.

MPS medicolegal adviser Dr Pallavi Bradshaw flags changes to approved practice settings for F2s

The Care.data programme that was due to be rolled out in 2014 was delayed following criticism of the way the information campaign supporting it was implemented.

The CQC is the regulator for health and social care in England. It monitors, inspects and regulates general practices to make sure they meet fundamental standards of quality and safety.

You can get direct assistance from Medical Protection by requesting a Clinical Risk Self Assessment (CRSA), which is a systematic approach that identifies risk and develops practical solutions, as one of the benefits of membership. Our experience has been that a CRSA is invaluable in assisting practices in preparing for their CQC inspection and also post-CQC inspection, to assist with issues raised by the CQC inspector.

The CQC wants to define what good quality care looks like in order to be able to effectively inspect and rate practices.

The GMC has revised its Confidentiality guidance for all doctors practising in the UK

The GMC has revised its Confidentiality guidance and this will come into force on 25 April 2017. Medicolegal Adviser Dr Rachel Birch explains what doctors need to know about the changes

Consultant gastroenterologist Dr Richard Shenderay shares his advice on choosing the right specialty and why he settled on gastroenterology.