OUR PURPOSE

The JMCC brings together the organisations that represent the medical profession in the UK. We provide a constructive forum in which our members can meet, debate and unite on the issues that affect the practice of medicine and the delivery of healthcare in the UK. We therefore aim to:

• act as a voice for a united medical profession
• influence policy and inform the wider public debate
• engage with key stakeholders and build partnerships to add real value

Promoting medicine and the delivery of healthcare
We promote policies that will help the medical profession and healthcare organisations deliver patient care of the highest quality

Encouraging innovation and raising standards
We liaise with the appropriate bodies to achieve excellence in the delivery of undergraduate and postgraduate training and seek to foster the ongoing development of a medical profession of the highest standard.

Working in partnership and adding value
We develop partnerships with key stakeholders to advance debate, further progress and achieve more together.

TERMS OF REFERENCE

The Joint Medical Consultative Council will provide a platform for members to debate, advise and take action upon issues that affect the practice of medicine and the delivery of healthcare in the UK, with the aim of providing improvmeents in quality, safety and effective use of resources. Specifically, the Council will:

hold regular meetings with the Department of Health, selecting relevant issues for formal discussions on policy and practice
bring such issues into formal discussions with other healthcare organisations
respond to national consultations on health matters
when appropriate, provide a untied voice for the medical profession

OUR MEMBERSHIP

Chairman: Dr Alan Russell

The Chairman is elected annually. Candidates for election as Chairman must be present or former members of the JMCC.

Vice-Chairmen: Sir Professor Neil Douglas and Dr Mark Porter

The Vice-Chairmen are elected at the first meeting of a new session and are, by convention, the Chairman of the CCSC and AoMRC.

Academy of Medical Royal Colleges:

Chairman of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges (Sir Professor Neil Douglas)
Royal College of Physicians (Professor Ian Gilmore)
Royal College of Surgeons of England (Mr John Black)
Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (Mr John Orr)
Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (Dr Neil Dewhurst)
Royal College of Physicians & Surgeons of Glasgow (Mr Ian Anderson)

Royal College of Anaesthetists (Dr Peter Nightingale)
Royal College of General Practitioners (Professor Steve Field)
Royal College of Obstetricians & Gynaecologists (Professor Sabaratnam Arulkumaran)
Royal College of Ophthalmologists (Mr John Lee)

Royal College of Paediatrics & Child Health (Professor Terence Stephenson)
Royal College of Pathologists (Professor Peter Furness)
Royal College of Psychiatrists (Professor Dinesh Bhugra)

Royal College of Radiologists (Professor Andy Adam)
College of Emergency Medicine (Dr John Heyworth)
Faculty of Dental Surgery (Professor Derrick Willmot)
Faculty of Public Health Medicine (Professor Alan Maryon Davis)
AoMRC Trainees Committee (Dr Jay Chaterjee)

British Medical Association:

Dr Mark Porter (Chairman of CCSC)

Central Consultants and Specialists Committee

Dr Keith Brent

Dr Ian Wilson

Dr Paul Flynn

Dr Rob Harwood

Dr Kevin O’Kane

Dr Tom Kane

Dr Edwin Borman

Dr David Scott

Staff and Associate Specialists Committee

Dr Radhakrishna Shanbhag
Dr Naikram Vaswani

Junior Doctors Committee
Dr Shree Datta
Dr Andy Thornley
Vacancy

Medical Academic Staff Committee

Prof David Katz

General Practitioners Committee

Dr Brian Keighley
Dr Chaand Nagpaul

British Dental Association

Mr Keith Altman
Mr Bernie Speculand

Conference of Postgraduate Medical Deans (COPMeD)

Vicky Osgood
Professor Davinder Sandhu

Medical Schools Council

Professor Tony Weetman

Non-Aligned Members

Chairman of JMCC (Dr Alan Russell)
Welsh Subcommittee of the JMCC (Mr Jonathan Osborne)

Co-opted Member

Observers

Professor Peter Ruben, GMC

Patricia Hamilton

Northern Ireland – Dr Stephen Austen

OUR HISTORY

When the National Health Service was set up in 1948 the Presidents of the three English Medical Royal Colleges were approached by Dr Guy Dain, Chairman of Council of the British Medical Association, to discuss the possibility of establishing a joint organisation to represent consultants and act as the supreme and single mouthpiece of hospital doctors in negotiations with the Government and other authorities.

An exploratory group was set up under the chairmanship of Sir Lionel Whitby and the first meeting of the new committee was held on the 17th December 1948, attended by the President of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, Sir William Gilliant, the President of the Royal College of Physicians, Lord Moran and the President of the Royal College of Surgeons, Lord Webb-Johnson. Representatives of the Consultants and Specialists Committee established by the BMA and of the Scottish Colleges also attended.

The next meeting was held on the 7th January 1949 at which the present pattern of a morning meeting of the committee followed by an afternoon meeting with the Department of Health was launched. In the following years the membership of the Committee was amended such that the BMA and the Medical Royal Colleges increased their representation whilst undergraduate deans and postgraduate deans were also asked to join the committee.

During the early stages of the committee’s operation the main matter discussed related to remuneration and terms and conditions of service of medical and dental staff. However, the terms of reference were changed to exclude the consideration of terms and conditions of service in 1975 after the BMA had acquired trade union status. The JMCC subsequently turned its focus onto the major issues of standards of professional knowledge and skill in the health service and the promotion of medical education and research.