FRCGP:
 |
| Founded: |
1952 |
| Members: |
36,000 (December 2008) |
| Country: |
United Kingdom |
| Key People: |
Prof David Haslam - President
Prof Steve Field - Chair of Council
Ms Hilary De Lyon - Chief Executive Officer |
| Main Office: |
London |
| Location: |
Hyde Park, SW7 1PU |
| Devolved Councils: |
Edinburgh, Cardiff, Belfast |
The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) is the professional body for general practitioners (GPs) in the United Kingdom. The RCGP represents and supports GPs on key issues including licensing, education, training, research and clinical standards. It is the largest of the medical royal colleges[1], with over 36,000 members[2]. The RCGP was founded in 1952 in London, England and is a registered charity. Its motto is Cum Scientia Caritas - "scientific knowledge applied with compassion".
[edit] Organisation
The RCGP is unique amongst the medical royal colleges in having both a President and a Chairman[citation needed]. The President takes a mainly ceremonial function while the Chairman sets the College's policy direction and leads the RCGP decision making body - the Council. The Council also acts in the statutory capacity as the trustee board of the charity.
The RCGP encompasses 31 local groups located across the UK known as faculties. These provide local support and services for doctors, including educational events, training and personal development services. Faculties in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are organised by devolved councils that liaise with their own national health and primary care organisations. There are also separate faculties for doctors based in the Republic of Ireland and overseas.
[edit] Membership
RCGP Membership growth between 1998-2008
RCGP Income and Expenditure - 2008
Paid membership of the RCGP is split into three main groups:
- Associates - fully or provisionally registered medical practitioners who have yet to pass the College's assessments for membership
- Members - medical practitioners who have successfully completed the College's assessments and applied for membership
- Fellows - members in good standing who have made a significant contribution to general practice/primary care, or have supported the College's aims and objectives
RCGP membership is also extended to Associates in Training (doctors in specialty training for general practice) and Life Members. The membership total currently stands at 36,000.
in 2008 there was the addition of over 7,000 Associates in Training (AiTs) to the College[3]. The membership total has effectively doubled between 1998 and 2008[3].
[edit] GP licensing - MRCGP
The MRCGP is an integrated training and assessment system that doctors must complete in order to obtain a licence to practise in the National Health Service (NHS). This license is known as a Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT).
The MRCGP is the culmination of many years work to becoming an NHS licensed doctor. After completing a medical degree and a two year foundation programme, a three year specialty training programme is undertaken. Candidates who successfully complete the MRCGP and obtain a licence to practise are eligible for inclusion on the General Medical Council's (GMC) GP Register as well as membership of the RCGP (MRCGP). The system has been running since August 2007 and is delivered locally in conjunction with deaneries.
Training and assessment comprises three components, each of which test a range of skills and attributes that together cover the general practice specialty training curriculum.
- The Applied Knowledge Test (AKT) is a multiple-choice computer based assessment that tests the knowledge base underpinning general practice in the UK. It covers three key areas - clinical medicine, critical appraisal/evidence-based clinical practice and health informatics/administrative issues.
- The Clinical Skills Assessment (CSA) assesses a doctor's ability to integrate and apply clinical, professional, communication and practical skills appropriate for general practice. It simulates patient consultations based on a range of scenarios drawn from general practice. Each consultation is marked by a different assessor, and the role of the patient is taken by a trained role-player.
- The Workplace-Based Assessment (WPBA) is a longitudinal programme of assessment that evaluates a doctor's progress and performance over time against twelve professional competence areas that together make up "Being a General Practitioner". WPBA takes place in the workplace through all three years of training.
Interim Membership by Assessment of Performance (iMAP) is currently an alternative route for membership. It enables established GPs who have not taken the College's MRCGP exam to gain membership though submission of a portfolio of evidence and oral examination. This route will be available until December 2009.
[edit] Professional development
The RCGP has designed a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Credits scheme that offers GPs a flexible learning framework in which to produce a portfolio of work to support revalidation. The College is also involved in the development of a quality assured appraisal system and an RCGP ePortfolio to support revalidation needs. The CPD scheme is supported by the Essential Knowledge Update (EKU), a learning initiative that provides doctors with a range of e-learning tools, publications and other written materials focussed on the latest developments in clinical practice knowledge.
The RCGP has also developed Quality Programmes to support GPs and their teams. These are criteria and evidence based programmes which are designed to be voluntary, supportive and developmental in function.
[edit] Publications, information services and archives
The RCGP maintains a range of publications, services and information resources to support the needs of members and non-members in general practice.
[edit] Publications
The British Journal of General Practice, published by the RCGP
The RCGP publishes several regular titles for members:
- The British Journal of General Practice (BJGP), an international journal that publishes articles of interest to family practitioners worldwide, formerly known as The Journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners
- RCGP News, the College's full-colour monthly newspaper, covering events in both the college and the wider medical professions
- Free electronic bulletins, including the weekly Seven days and bi-monthly e-Bulletin
[edit] Information services
Information sheets on professional issues and summary reports are regularly published to keep members up to date with new developments in general practice. These are complemented by an enquiries service and a non-clinical guidance database (available on the RCGP website) designed to help GPs with everyday administration and management issues.
The RCGP's library catalogue contains MD and PhD Theses on general practice, an international selection of primary care journals and a loan collection of College publications. The library is open to all members, and to non-members by appointment.
[edit] Archives
The RCGP's archives provide an important insight into the origins of the College and the foundation of modern general practice. Exhibits include a variety of personal papers, historic books, College institutional records, and a museum collection of medical instruments dating back to the 17th century.
[edit] Prizes and awards
The RCGP provides over 20 academic and monetary awards for people at different stages of their career in general medical practice[4]. The awards are administered by an Awards Committee chaired by the President, and are usually presented at the College's two general meetings. The College also offers a number of International Travel Scholarships, while some regional faculties run their own awards.
The college's highest award is the Honorary Fellowship, awarded to doctors and non-doctors from the UK and overseas for outstanding work towards the objectives of the College.
[edit] Buildings
The Clinical Skills Assessment Centre (CSA) in Croydon
The RCGP's headquarters is at 14 and 15 Princes Gate, elegant terraced properties on Kensington Road that date from the mid-Victorian period. The front of the College faces Hyde Park while the rear overlooks Ennismore Gardens, one of the biggest private gardens in London. Neighbours include the Iranian, Tunisian, Moroccan and Ethiopian embassies. The College moved into No. 14 in January 1963 and into 15 in 1976[5].
The Clinical Skills Assessment Centre (CSA) in Croydon was opened in September 2007 and provides trainee doctors with exposure to realistic patient care scenarios. As of 31 March 2008 the Centre had assessed over 3,000 doctors.
[edit] Coat of arms
The College's crest and coat of arms
The College received the letters patent for its Coat of Arms in 1961. The elements promote three main themes:
- The ancient lineage of medicine - the gavel entwined with the serpent Asklepious (the Greek God of Healing)
- Enlightenment and wide-ranging knowledge (the owl, the lamp)
- The doctor's compassionate and healing relationship with their patient - the white poppy symbolising the relief of pain
[edit] College history
[edit] Background to the College's formation
The Royal College of General Practitioners was founded in November 1952 in response to growing physical, administrative and financial pressures that demoralised GPs and undermined standards of patient care. These pressures increased significantly with the creation of the NHS in 1948. GPs now had to provide free primary care throughout the community and act as 'gatekeepers' with responsibility for referring patients to specialist consultants in NHS hospitals.
The formation of the College received widespread support throughout the medical press and individual GPs. In January 1953 'Foundation Membership' was made available to established GPs who satisfied defined criteria, and within six weeks 1,655 doctors had joined[6].
[edit] William Pickles
One of the first presidents of the RCGP was William Pickles, who was also one of the first members of the British Medical Association[citation needed]. He spoke out in favour of the foundation of the NHS and was held in high regard worldwide for his work in epidemiology.
[edit] Moving to Princes Gate
The College bought the freehold to 14 Princes Gate in July 1962 for £175,000, after occupying a variety of London premises in Blackfriars Lane, Tavistock Square and Cadogan Gardens[5]. The new location gave the College space for a library, meeting rooms and accommodation for members. Following a series of legal disputes, the RCGP purchased the freehold for 15 Princes Gate in 1992, doubling the size of its headquarters.
[edit] The Iranian Embassy siege
On Wednesday 30 April 1980, the Iranian Embassy situated next door to the College at 16 Princes Gate was violently invaded by Arab separatists. The College was evacuated and used by the SAS as a base of operations. The SAS finally stormed the building after a hostage was killed. The siege lasted five days and received global media coverage. Seven people died in total.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
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