Patients could be treated by doctors of the opposite sex without their knowledge or consent, new data reveals.
Figures show that at least 77 doctors have registered a gender change with the General Medical Council (GMC) since 2003.
Only two have reported to the GMC that they have obtained a UK Gender Recognition Certificate, the document that grants legal recognition of the change.
And it raises concern that doctors are allowed to self-identify at will to change gender on registration without further controls.
The information, provided by the GMC to Labor gender critic Baroness Hayter, revealed that a total of 14 doctors changed gender on the GMC register in 2022 and nine last year.
The data revealed that a total of 14 doctors changed gender on the GMC register in 2022 and nine last year. The image shows a patient going for an STD test at a clinic (File image)
In a letter to Baroness Hayter (pictured), Professor Dame Carrie MacEwen, president of the General Medical Council, said: “Published register data may not, in all cases, reflect the doctor’s sex at birth.” .
When Baroness Hayter insisted on the importance of patients knowing the sex of their doctor, the GMC responded that “the primary purpose” of the register was to show that doctors have “appropriate training, skills and experience” (Image from archive)
Professor Dame Carrie MacEwen, chair of the GMC, wrote to Baroness Hayter and said “the published register data may not, in all cases, reflect the doctor’s sex at birth,” The Sunday Telegraph reported.
This means that patients cannot tell from the record whether their doctor was born male or female.
When Baroness Hayter insisted on the importance of patients knowing the sex of their doctor, the GMC responded that “the primary purpose” of the register was to show that doctors have “appropriate training, skills and experience”.
She was also told that patients are more likely to seek information about their doctor’s gender from local healthcare providers, rather than the GMC register.
The GMC also assured that patients could use a companion, but the policy means patients will not know in advance whether they should request one, because the biological sex of their doctor is not shown.
The organization said they stopped asking doctors for a Gender Recognition Certificate in 2010 “because many found it difficult to get one.”
Maya Forstater (pictured), chief executive of Sex Matters, which campaigns for clarity about sex in the law and everyday life, said: “The General Medical Council’s handling of this issue is chilling and shows that prioritizes trans identities over the safety and well-being of female patients
Maya Forstater, chief executive of Sex Matters, which campaigns for clarity about sex in the law and everyday life, said: “The General Medical Council’s handling of this issue is chilling and demonstrates its prioritization of trans identities over the safety and well-being of female patients.
“If a woman has been told that she will be examined by a female doctor, then it is a violation of her consent for her to meet a man posing as a woman.
“Similar to the problem of male police officers searching women, this policy ignores women’s human rights and puts them at risk of state-sanctioned sexual assault.”
A GMC spokesperson said: “We recognize that some people, for various reasons, will want to see a same-sex doctor, and the relevant healthcare provider, whether a GP, sexual health clinic or other service, is best placed to do so. manage such requests to ensure the needs of those patients are met.
‘They may also take other measures where necessary, for example by providing a companion.
‘We have been processing gender change applications since the early 2000s. Our current approach to allowing registrants to change their gender on the medical record complies with the existing legislative framework.
“We have responded directly to the Baroness’s most recent letter regarding the points she has raised.”