ABSTRACT
Regulation of the health professions is undergoing reform in many countries: professionals are no longer trusted to regulate themselves free from external scrutiny but rather the state and the public are becoming more involved in regulatory decisions (Dubois et al. 2006). The rationale for current reforms is both to protect professionals and to protect patients. But the interests of these two groups are not always the same. This chapter explores the issue of cui bono. Who most benefits from regulatory reforms of the professions: professionals or patients? As Kieran Walshe points out, the ‘… dichotomy – between the public and the professional interest – is central to the development of health professions regulation …’ (Walshe 2009: 144). This chapter examines recent changes to seven regulatory mechanisms and analyses the tensions between competing principles of transparency and confidentiality. A transparency strategy requires regulators to consider whether there is conflict or compatibility between the interests of professionals and the interests of the public.
