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.

    14/88 (page 12)
    be erased from tlie Register,—has been exercised by the Council whenever it has been found necessary ; and the justice of the deci- sions of the Council has not, so far as the Committee are aware, ever been questioned. It can scarcely be supposed that such a power would have been entrusted to any Council,—a power, be it remarked, from which there is no appeal,—unless its constitution had been thoroughly considered, and unless the Government had felt suf- ficient security for the careful selection of those who would have to exercise this power. Dentists Act ^* ^^^^ji^g out of the Dentists (1878). This Act, recently passed, assigns additional duties to the Council, without its having been thought necessary to make provi- sion for any alteration in the constitution of the Council. The Committee are of opinion that the Council is quite adequate for the performance of these additional duties, and, moreover, that it is not desirable that representatives of dentistry, or of any special branches of medicine or surgery, as such, should be added to the Council. other duties g. Other duties of the Council. or the Council. Various subjects which do not form part of the prescribed duties have from time to time forced themselves upon the attention of the Council, and have occupied much of its time. Some of these were incidental to the duties above men- tioned, especially, as already stated, to that most important duty of supervising Education and Examinations, and to the function of sanctioning the co-operation of authorities in con- ducting their Examinations. The admission of reporters has made the Profession fully cognisant of the proceedings and debates, which have, for the most part, beer published at length in the medical journals. That there should have been differences of opinion upon certain important points, which may have to some extent hindered the action or weakened the decision or lessened the influence of the Council, is no more than might have been expected from the exercise of tbe independent judgment of thoughtful persons upon difficult questions as well from the different aspects which some questions present to those who come from different divisions of the kingdom.