Thursday 12 April 2006
After Shipman: the trust between patients and doctors
Between 1972 and 1998, Harold Shipman is believed to have killed about 250 people.
Shipman operated undetected in the context of the NHS, its training and postgraduate education arrangements, and within group general practices.
A conference being held by the Royal Society of Medicine will examine the impact of Shipman on patient-doctor relationships.
It will be the first major public debate hosted by the RSM to consider trust and accountability in doctor-patient relationships.
The RSM’s Associate Dean, Dr John Scadding, said it was important that the medical profession confront the issues raised by the Shipman case.
“Shipman went undetected for years. He easily worked within the NHS, including regulation by the GMC, and was thought by many of his patients to be a good doctor,”said Dr Scadding.
“Since his conviction there have a number of extensive official inquiries but there has been limited debate that brings together doctors, patients, lawyers, practice and PCT managers in one forum to consider how we move forward,”he said.
The conference will be held on Tuesday 2 May with a keynote address delivered by Dame Janet Smith, who chaired the Shipman Inquiry. Other speakers include Richard Smith, former editor of the BMJ, Niall Dickson, Chief Executive of the King’s Fund and Brian Hurwtiz, Professor of Medicine and the Arts, King’s College London.
The symposium will also hear from Dr Raj Patel, a GP from Hyde, who along with partners at his practice countersigned cremation forms for Shipman over many years.
Dr Scadding said the conference was an opportunity to examine whether there are differences in public and professional views about good doctoring.
“The Royal Society of Medicine’s conference is an important step forward. Doctors need to examine, with patients and the public, what is meant by trust and accountability post Shipman,”he said.
After Shipman: Trust between Patients and Doctors is being held on 2 May 2006 at the Royal Society of Medicine, 1 Wimpole Street London W1G 0AE.
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