Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists

The Reinstatement Committee was established in 1999 to consider how applications for reinstatement to the College Register from those removed as a result of GMC (or other) disciplinary action should be assessed. The remit of the Committee was:
1) To consider all applications for reinstatement to the RCOG Register of Fellows and Members from those who have been removed for reasons of misconduct;
2) To make all necessary and proper enquiries, as it saw fit, and to act according to equity and rules of natural justice;
3) To produce guidelines on the assessment procedure to be followed by both the applicant and the Committee, including appropriate criteria for reinstatement and an indication of the timeframe for the procedure;
4) To recommend to Council, in writing, the reinstatement, or otherwise, for each application. In 2001 the Committee reported to Council on progress and advised that it was necessary for the College to set up systems to ensure equity following rules of natural justice. This was particularly pertinent following the 1998 Human Rights Act. It was also recommended that the Committee deal with both removal and reinstatement. In 2001 a Removal and Reinstatement Committee was established in order to:
1) Review the membership of the College of those Fellows and Members who had been removed from the Register of Medical Practitioners maintained by the GMC or by the relevant body of any country overseas;
2) Review the membership of the College of those Fellows and Members referred to it by the President or his/her deputy where it was thought the individual had brought the College and/or profession into disrepute;
3) Assess applications for reinstatement received in the College from those who had previously been removed from the College Register for misconduct;
4) Comply with the regulations for removal from or reinstatement to the College Register as approved by Council. The Committee was to reach an agreed decision, which, if necessary, was a majority decision, and advised Council on these decisions. All discussions of the Committee were confidential to the Committee.