The General Medical Council (GMC) has today (Friday 13 December) become the regulator of physician associates (PAs) and anaesthesia associates (AAs).
Dr Hilary Williams, RCP vice president for Wales and chair of the RCP PA oversight group said:
‘The RCP has campaigned long and hard for the regulation of PAs. This is an important moment for our PA colleagues, many of whom have been calling for professional regulation for years.
‘This is a key step forward for patient safety and will contribute in part to improved care by establishing robust educational and professional standards, and a system for holding people to account where there are serious concerns about their conduct.
‘The RCP will next week publish three sets of guidance for PAs and employers on scope of practice, supervision, and titles and introductions. This guidance will act as a placeholder pending the findings of the independent review of physician associate and anaesthesia associate professions (the Leng review).
‘The Faculty of Physician Associates, which currently holds the PA Managed Voluntary Register, will close on 31 December 2024. All PAs should register with the GMC as soon as possible, as from December 2026 it will be an offence to practise as a PA or AA in the UK without registration.’
More information about the GMC’s regulation of PAs and AAs is available here.