The regulator consulted on five strategic aims and its associated expenditure plans earlier this year. The approach set out is captured by the strategy’s title; ‘Right time’, to illustrate the GDC’s continued focus on developing its approach to ‘upstream regulation’, ‘Right place’, to describe the continued work to support issues resolution by the correct organisation and to promote local complaint resolution wherever possible, and ‘Right-touch’, to highlight the regulator’s commitment to ensuring its enforcement activity is evidence-based and proportionate.
GDC Chair, William Moyes, said, “The programme of work within this strategy shows how the GDC intends to continue to improve its approach to achieving its statutory responsibilities of protecting the public and maintaining public confidence in dental services. Key to this is ensuring that complaints are dealt with in the right place, which is often in the surgery. Over the last few years the GDC has had increasing success cooperating with stakeholders to achieve its aims and this strategy shows how we plan to further develop our approach over the next three years.”
The GDC’s new approach to strategy development seeks to make the relationship between its regulatory activity and the fees it charges more visible, providing increased transparency.