16.07.12
Patients misled by ‘surgeon’ title over qualifications
Doctors are calling for the title ‘surgeon’ to be protected by law to stop patients being deceived or confused.
The proposed changes would exclude podiatric surgeons and ‘aesthetic surgeons’, such as beauty specialists offering Botox injections.
As it stands, there is no legislation restricting the use of the title ‘surgeon’ so it can be applied to those without medical degrees or surgical training.
The Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) has conducted a poll of 2,000 people, finding that 95% expect the title ‘surgeon’ to apply only to the medically qualified. The RCS wants the use of the title restricted. who do not require medical degrees.
27% of those consulted in the poll said they would check a surgeon’s qualifications before having surgery. The RCS concluded from this that some patients were being misled by the usage of the title. The poll indicated a high level of public trust in the job title, as 91% of those polled expected surgeons to be listed as recognised professional specialists in surgery.
TheInstituteofChiropodistsand Podiatrists (ICP) has insisted that podiatric surgeons are adequately qualified to use the title. A spokesman pointed out that podiatric surgeons have “to undergo six years of podiatric medicine training before completing a master’s in podiatric surgery in order to qualify for the title” and that training could be up to 12 years.
The Department of Health has stated that they do not want employers to mislead patients with inappropriate job titles.
But a spokesman supported the ICP, saying: “The Department of Health is fully supportive of podiatrists who have undergone the appropriate training performing surgery of the foot and ankle…These professionals are regulated by the Health Professions Council to ensure that they deliver high quality care for patients.”
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