Report of the Executive Committee on the constitution and working of the General Medical Council : memorandum by Dr. Pitman and Sir James Paget : memorandum by Dr. Quain : and appendix containing documents in regard to the Council.

  • General Medical Council. Executive Committee.
Date:
1879
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report of the Executive Committee on the constitution and working of the General Medical Council : memorandum by Dr. Pitman and Sir James Paget : memorandum by Dr. Quain : and appendix containing documents in regard to the Council. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by Royal College of Physicians, London. The original may be consulted at Royal College of Physicians, London.

    19/88 page 17
    with the consideration of the pecuniary and other interests of the Council , should not profession,—with such subjects, for examples, as the position seek to and claims of the medical officers of the Army and Navy, and of such duties, practitioners engaged in any of the departments of the public service, the claims of the medical officers of charities, the sup- pression of quackery, and, generally, with what is sometimes termed the Government of the Profession. The Committee believe that the Council, however conscious Undesirable that the of the great importance of subjects such as these, has been right Council in not attempting or wishing to make the consideration of them transformed a part of its duties. They recommend the Council to persist in Ifamenrof this course, and to take no steps which would imply a desire that sionf^^^^^' it should become, as some have suggested, a kind of Parliament of the profession. The range of its duties was defined by the Medical Act; and it was no part of the design of that Act that persons once admitted and registered as members of the medical profession should be subject to the control or guidance of the Council. The sole exception was to be in the happily rare instances of those guilty of infamous conduct in any professional respect. Parliament may be considered as having thought it right, after taking care that none but fit persons should be registered as members of the profession, that the profession should be allowed to manage its own affairs and promote its own interests in any way that it might think best, and with complete independence of a Council necessarily subject to the supervision of Government, which is required to submit its accounts to Parliament, and which includes members appointed by the Crown. Nevertheless, should it seem expedient to grant the desire Representa- which has been expressed, that persons should be selected to gSieraibody represent exclusively the general body of registered Prac- Pract?''^^^^'^ titioners, the Committee would suggest that the best way of accomplishing this object would be to increase the number of Crown nominees by four—two such additional members to be no- minated for England, one for Scotland, and one for Ireland. This mode of appointment would obviate the agitation and expense which, as before stated, popular elections could never fail to cause, and would form the best guarantee for the fitness of those whowould> thus obtain seats in the Council. But the Committee, as already stated, do not think this course to be necessary. They are, B
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