GOsC responds to positive audit of complaints handling

For immediate use

The General Osteopathic Council (GOsC) welcomes the positive results of an audit of its complaints handling process by the independent statutory body overseeing the work of all healthcare regulators – the Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence (CHRE).

In September 2010 the CHRE conducted an audit of the way the GOsC handled complaints against osteopaths which had been formally closed, and not referred to a full hearing from March – August 2010.
The overall aim of the CHRE’s audit, conducted across all UK healthcare regulators, is to seek assurance that the regulators’ decisions protect patients and the public, maintaining confidence in the reputation of the professions and the system of regulation.

Along with examples of strengths in case handling by the GOsC, the CHRE’s audit found that:

• cases reviewed and closed by the GOsC were reasonable and the reasons given were clear and comprehensive,
• the GOsC’s complaints handling systems helped to deliver high-quality decisions communicated to parties in a professional way,
• and the GOsC has a well managed system of casework with no evidence of significant risks to patients or to the maintenance of public confidence.

GOsC Head of Regulation, Velia Soames, said: “We welcome the findings of the CHRE’s audit that our systems and processes for dealing with the initial stages of a complaint are robust.”

The full audit report is available on the CHRE website at: http://www.professionalstandards.org.uk/docs/audit-reports/ftp-audit-report-2010-11.pdf?sfvrsn=0       

ENDS

For further information, contact:
The GOsC Press Office
Tel: 020 7357 6655 x245
Email: pressoffice@osteopathy.org.uk 

NOTES TO EDITORS

The General Osteopathic Council (GOsC) has a statutory duty to regulate the practice of osteopathy in the UK. Osteopaths must be registered with the GOsC in order to practise in the UK. We work with the public and the profession to promote patient safety by:

• registering qualified professionals
• setting, maintaining and developing standards of osteopathic practice and conduct
• assuring the quality of osteopathic education; ensuring continuing professional development
• helping patients with concerns or complaints about an osteopath.

The 2011 Statutory Register of Osteopaths provides a geographical index of all practising osteopaths, and is available to the general public and to healthcare providers online at: www.osteopathy.org.uk.

The Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence (www.professionalstandards.org.uk) is the body charged by Parliament with overseeing the work of the nine healthcare regulators.

The nine healthcare regulators are:

• General Chiropractic Council (GCC)
• General Dental Council (GDC)
• General Medical Council (GMC)
• General Optical Council (GOC)
• General Osteopathic Council (GOsC)
• General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhc)
• Health Professions Council (HPC)
• Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)
• Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland (PSNI)