Scot Junior

From Ganfyd

(This article needs a fair bit of work...)

The so-called "Scot Junior" affair is one of the outcomes of Modernising Medical Careers (MMC).

When Dame Carol Black was reappointmented as the chairwoman of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, making her a very senior figure in the medical establishment. In response, in August 2008 a Junior doctor who was angry at the disruption to his and his peers' careers caused by (MMC) and by the Medical Training Application Service (MTAS), and in particular by the way MMC had been portrayed Dame Carol criticised here - and in particular her actions and statements - in a posting on DNUK.^[1] Presumably feeling that ordinary, polite language would fail to convey the depths of his disgust, he called her rude names, using scatological anglo-saxon terms with Chaucerian pithiness.

Most doctors felt that the criticism he made was "fair comment" - indeed, the specific allegations he made were not new, and most were obviously metaphorical and not intended literally. As his comments were of a political nature and not regarding the senior figure's clinical practice they did not fall foul of GMC's Good medical practice guidance.^[2]

The comment was allegedly reported by Professor Elizabeth Paice, London dean, not through the DNUK's "Forum Abuse" procedures (although the DNUK moderators did, fairly swiftly, delete the posting with the comments), but to Prof Gillian Needham, dean of the Highlands Deanery, where Scot Junior worked.

The doctor was immediately suspended, allegedly by Prof Gillian Needham. This provoked allegations that, if true, this would be an abuse of her position.

Scot Junior was briefly reinstated, but it has been suggested that this was only to prevent a planned story about his suspension being run in a Sunday paper, as he was almost immediately re-suspended.^[3] It was alleged that this second suspension was related to a misdemeanour he had made as a student, some 8 years previously.^[4] He announced in mid-September, some 6 weeks after his initial suspension and just after a weekend Radio 4 programme discussed the issue,^[5] that he would be returning to work the next day.

The issue raised many issues, including:

• The accountability of people in positions of power and influence in the medical establishment;
• The possibility that such people may abuse their power and influence, and what can be done if they do;
• The use - or misuse of suspension (include reference to comments by parliamentary committees on their punitive nature etc.)
• Etc...

External links

• Remedy UK: Bullying Victimisation and Abuse of Power?
• A Doctor's Note. iPM, Radio 4.^[6]
• Andrew Allison's "conservative blog" comment
• Various posts on "NHS Exposed" web site
• Dr Rant blog - August 2008 postings include many references to this affair, as do the September posts.
• Witchdoctor blogs for August and September 2008 refer to this issue
• Another blog referring to this issue, and in particular to the GMC's Good medical practice guidance.
• Dr Needham's version of events,^[7] and various DNUK threads responding to it (available only to members).^[8]

References