Designated body, responsible officer and suitable person: what they mean

These terms decide how you revalidate. This guide explains each using the GMC’s guidance.

For most doctors, the designated body is the organisation in which they do most or all of their practice. Your responsible officer is a senior doctor within that organisation. The relationship between you and your RO or suitable person is called your “connection details”.

If you are connected to a designated body, your RO must:

• make sure you have access to appraisal systems and processes for collecting and holding information; and
• make a recommendation to the GMC, usually every five years, on whether you are up to date, fit to practise and should be revalidated.

No. The GMC says there are clear rules to determine whether you have a connection. You can’t choose which designated body to connect to, and a designated body can’t decide whether to connect to you. Only UK organisations are designated bodies.

Normally once your contract of employment has started. Until then you don’t have a connection to that organisation, even if you have a job offer and a start date. The GMC tells you to show in your GMC Online account that you don’t currently have a connection, and to update it when you start.

The GMC says some relationships may not count as employment. Check the terms of any honorary contract. If you have a locum bank, zero-hours or self-employed contract directly with an organisation, check with them whether it gives you a connection. If you work through several organisations or locum agencies, you need to identify which, if any, is your designated body.

If you have no designated body, you may be able to identify a suitable person: a licensed doctor the GMC has approved to make a revalidation recommendation about you. Typically that is a responsible officer or someone with similar responsibilities, someone responsible for clinical governance or appraisal in your organisation, or the medical director of an organisation or membership body that supports doctors who do your type of work. The GMC must approve them first.

Use the GMC’s connection tool, which shows whether you have a connection to a designated body, could connect to a suitable person, or have no connection. You must keep your connection details up to date in GMC Online, including if you lose or gain a connection, even temporarily.

If you have an RO, your designated body makes sure you have an appraisal, and you must use the system provided unless your RO asks you to use an alternative. If you have a suitable person, they help you access an appraisal that they agree is sufficient. See independent medical appraisal.

You arrange your own annual appraisal. See how to revalidate without a responsible officer and REV12 form explained.

GMC, Revalidation requirements for doctors; Revalidation for doctors: questions and answers.