GMC postpones revalidation for another 9,000 doctors

Another cohort of doctors will be allowed to delay their revalidation ‘due to the ongoing demands’ of the Covid-19 pandemic, the GMC has said.

Some 9,000 doctors who were due to revalidate between March and July next year will have their dates postponed by four months.

This comes as the GMC had already deferred revalidation for more than 50,000 doctors who had been due to revalidate between March 2020 and March 2021.

The GMC said affected doctors will be given the opportunity to revalidate ‘at any time between now and their new date’, which will be between August and November next year, if they and their responsible officer are ready and able to do so.

GMC director of registration and revalidation Una Lane said the decision has been taken in response to ‘an exceptional situation’, with the GMC ‘determined to be as flexible as we can in our response’.

She said: ‘We have listened to understandable concerns from doctors and responsible officers about escalating rates of the Covid-19 infection. We are very aware of the ongoing pressures that the profession and providers are facing.

‘We had a positive response when we moved revalidation dates for an initial group of doctors earlier this year. It seems right and sensible to proceed in a similar way for a further group doctors who may well be under significant pressure in the coming months.’

The regulator will contact those affected to confirm their individual position.

It comes as the GMC faced criticism last week for continuing to hold its PLAB exams in Manchester, despite the city moving into the very high alert level for Covid-19 with travel restrictions imposed.