ABSTRACT

The concept of medicine as a profession has a long and honourable history. It is obvious from the Code of Hammurabi that there was a distinct group of individuals who were recognised as authorised to deliver health care. The medical profession is very conservative and operates on the assumption that the way things are done is the best way for them to be done. There are widely accepted robust methods for assessing knowledge but assessing professionalism presents challenges. The author's duty as medical educators is to minimise the risk of misconduct by providing effective learning methods that will develop professional attitudes and behaviours. Students in the Allied Health Professions are registered with the appropriate professional body such as the Chartered Society of Physiotherapists. The argument is made that registration with the GMC and a consequent centralisation of disciplinary procedures would result in greater consistency in application of the criteria.