European medical regulators discuss EU directive
09 July 2010
The General Medical Council (GMC) hosted a meeting of medical regulators from 17 European countries and the European Commission on 2 July 2010 to discuss the EU Directive on the recognition of professional qualifications.
The meeting was chaired by the Chief Executive of the GMC, Niall Dickson, and provided regulators with an opportunity to share their practical experiences of how the Directive is working in their countries.
Attendees discussed a number of key areas covered by the Directive, including the recognition and registration processes for EEA doctors, language competence of doctors, cross-border sharing of information, continuous professional development and education standards.
The Directive is likely to be reviewed by the European Commission in 2012. The GMC organised this meeting in conjunction with the Commission, the Conseil National de l’Ordre des Médecins (the French Order of Doctors), and the Bundesärztekammer (the German Medical Association) to gather evidence to assist this review.
Niall Dickson, Chief Executive of the GMC, said:
“This was an important opportunity to share experiences of how the Directive is working in practice. For us ensuring patient safety and improving standards of practice are paramount but we also recognise the vital role migrating doctors have played in the delivering high quality care in the UK. We are committed to working with colleagues from the Commission and across Europe as the Directive is reviewed.”
Medical regulators from Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Germany, France, Hungary, Luxembourg, Malta, The Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, Slovenia and the UK attended the meeting.
