Why this issue is important?

Whilst disciplinary policies, processes and investigations are necessary and important for addressing major workplace issues and queries over professional registration, their application – including ‘fitness-to-practice’ and validation processes with professional bodies – can cause harm to those being investigated, as well as to others involved in the process.

These policies, processes and investigations, if conducted without caution and sensitivity, can also harm an organisation's culture and reputation and divert time and resources from meeting the needs of those that it exists to serve.

Understanding the potential impact of disciplinary polices, processes and investigations and building in compassionate support for those going through them therefore needs to be an integral part of the process.

What do we want to achieve?

The FPH, in it's application of both disciplinary processes and professional registration and validation, is committed to:

Taking a "last resource" approach to the application of formal disciplinary processes – seeking to address issues in an informal way wherever possible.
Ensuring that a detailed fact-finding exercise is undertaken before each formal disciplinary process is enacted.
Supporting managers to deliver disciplinary processes both effectively and compassionately, ensuring any mitigating factors are included in their decision-making.
Creating a culture of learning that seeks to understand and respond to issues, rather than taking a punitive approach.
Understanding our duty of care for individuals being taken through our processes and providing them the necessary support. This is to protect their health and wellbeing and to enable them to fully contribute to the process itself.
Deploying staff resource to ensure that processes are run as efficiently and sensitively as possible.
Being proactive in supporting individuals who have been taken through a process as they return to their role, recognising the specific needs they may have for an effective restoration to the organisation.
Ensuring that we identify and provide practical support for those who are dismissed following a process.
Monitoring our data – to understand wider issues and themes that may influence and impact how we may need to review and consider our processes and approach, so that we continue to be a learning organisation.
Ensuring parity between doctors and those from other professional backgrounds.

What actions can local teams take?

The focus on the effective and compassionate delivery of disciplinary policies, processes and investigations are much more about the cultures in which we exist and operate, than the process itself.

Local teams can begin a conversation on this area of people practice – considering the wider impact and how they can support the national approach being adopted by FPH.

They can also review their own decision-making processes and consider what changes might need to be taken to ensure that disciplinary processes demonstrate a commitment to learning, rather than punishment.

What actions will FPH take?

FPH will be drawing learning and insight from the growing research in this area to inform our own practice.

We will be undertaking a review of our current approach to disciplinary practice and application of related policies to ensure that they align with this action plan.

There is also recognition that this is not just an issue for FPH, or the wider healthcare sector, from where much of this work has been developed – it affects the wider working population of the UK.

We will be developing a programme of work for FPH to engage government, professional bodies, employers and trade unions to explore greater understanding, and where necessary, change to improve management of these policies.

What actions can individuals take?

We are asking that all colleagues who may be involved in the commissioning and leading of disciplinary policies, processes and investigations to:

Adopt the approach set out in this document to ensure disciplinary processes reflect a balance of both compassion and compliance.
Reflect on prior practice and involvement in the application of disciplinary processes and consider what they may do differently in the light of this approach.
Inform and work with their regional Faculty Adviser to take new processes forward and standardise this approach.

How will we measure progress?

Regularly review disciplinary processes in place, reflect on their outcomes and common themes, and use these insights to inform and improve how the process is applied over time.
Develop an opportunity for post-investigation reviews with key parties involved (the investigated, investigators, managers, trade union representatives) to ensure that learning is captured to inform the future application of process.

Resources and future information:

Disciplinary policies, processes and investigations