Hundreds of British doctors and nurses are still practising despite being accused of serious sexual assault and rape in the past six years.
General Medical Council figures show that between 2018 and 2024, 248 doctors faced allegations of rape, sexual assault or attempted rape – without having their licences suspended.
The scandal-hit Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), meanwhile, had more than 400 nurses practising without restrictions after sexual offence allegations between 2019 and 2024.
The figures, obtained via a freedom of information (FOI) request, call into question the decision-making of the UK’s two biggest health watchdogs after a series of exposés by The Independent.
• Between 2018 and 2024, 11 doctors were accused of possessing indecent images of children, but no interim orders were made
• Over the same period, 261 doctors faced no restrictions despite allegations of physical assault
• In 2018, one doctor accused of murder had no restrictions placed on his ability to practise
• A doctor found to have sexually assaulted colleagues was able to practise as long as he kept the GMC informed of his job movements.
‘Deeply troubling’
Dr Becky Cox, a GP and founder of Surviving in Scrubs, a group which represents doctors assaulted on duty, said: “We are deeply concerned by this data showing that only a low proportion of doctors accused of sexual assault receive interim orders to limit their practise while awaiting investigation and tribunal.”
The FOI data show the number of doctors and nurses each year who were the subject of allegations without interim suspensions or restrictions, but does not specify the length of time during which they practised in these conditions.
Doctors can have interim orders placed on their licence to practise if the GMC decides there is enough evidence, with the separate body Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) setting the sanctions, which can include suspension.
For nurses, the NMC can recommend to its fitness-to-practise panels that an interim order be put in place.
The figures come after reports from The Independent revealed a “toxic” culture within the NMC was leading to nurses accused of sexual assault and domestic violence going unchecked.
Conditions and interim orders
Investigations reveal that when doctors do receive interim orders, the majority are still not suspended. Instead, they have conditions placed on them.
One transplant surgeon in Oxford has been suspended from working for eight months after a hearing which found he sexually harassed female colleagues, made racist comments and abused his senior position. Three of his victims were trainees.
The surgeon previously had interim conditions on his licence but these only required him to inform the GMC of where he was working, rather than limiting his ability to work.
In another case, the GMC was taken to the High Court by its own regulator, the Professional Standards Authority (PSA), over an unduly lenient six-month suspension for a doctor accused of having sex with a vulnerable patient.
The PSA argued the GMC did not take into account the vulnerability of this patient, and the High Court ordered a further six-month suspension for the doctor.
The GMC told The Independent it had originally requested that the doctor be struck off, but the Medical Practitioners’ Tribunal Service imposed a six-month suspension instead.
‘Allegations taken seriously’
The GMC said it takes all allegations seriously, with all sexual assault, rape or attempted rape accusations referred to the external MPTS after an investigation, unless in exceptional circumstances.
Anthony Omo, director of fitness to practise and general counsel at the GMC, said: “We are very clear that there is no place for any form of sexual assault, harassment or discrimination in the profession. In many cases involving sexual allegations, the GMC’s position will be that such serious misconduct is incompatible with continued registration.
“Earlier this year our updated professional standards for doctors, Good Medical Practice, came into effect, setting out zero tolerance of sexual misconduct and making it clear that acting in a sexual way towards patients or colleagues is unacceptable.”
The NMC, which has strengthened its guidance for staff on sexual misconduct and other forms of abuse of nurses outside professional practice, in the past year, said: “We take allegations of sexual misconduct very seriously, and our data show that where charges are proved at a hearing, the most common sanction handed down … is a striking off order.”
See more from MedicalBrief archives:
British female surgeons sexually assaulted in NHS hospitals
Dismissed nurse fights back in alleged sexual harassment case
A culture of intimidation is thriving in the NHS