Medical Council · NMBI · Dental Council · Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland · CORU · Complaint or fitness to practise inquiry

Ensuring Clinical Competence and Patient Safety facing a complaint to your regulator or a fitness to practise inquiry about competence or patient safety

Your clinical judgement, your competence or a patient’s safety is in question?

Errors — a missed diagnosis, a delayed escalation or a medication error
Scope — work taken on beyond your competence, under pressure or without support
Deterioration — a patient’s deterioration missed, or not escalated in time
Transitions — a new role, a locum post or a return to practice without enough support
Supervision — supervision not sought, or a task delegated without checking competence
Records — notes that do not show what was assessed, decided and escalated
Health — fatigue, ill health or burnout affecting your practice
Any other concern — about your clinical competence or patient safety

Facing a complaint or a fitness to practise inquiry about your competence or patient safety — before the Medical Council, NMBI, the Dental Council, the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland or CORU?

This course is for a healthcare professional whose clinical competence or patient safety practice is the subject of a complaint, an employer review or a fitness to practise inquiry. This course helps you remediate — and show the remediation, with a dated certificate for your written response, your reflection, an undertaking or an inquiry.

Buy this course — €100 (€70 with Bulk Buy 10) Bulk Buy — from €70 a course

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Immediate access · certificate on completion · twelve months' access

2 CPD hours
Self-paced
Written for Ireland
CPD certificate
From €70 a course (Bulk Buy of 10)

Our team

Dr Shehzad IqbalFounder, course author and facilitatorMBBS, MRCS, MRCGP
Dr Mo MirzaCourse facilitatorMedically trained, UCL London
Ludmila UpenieceBusiness development and supportPsychology, UEL London

At a glance

Who it is for: Any healthcare professional in Ireland facing a complaint, an incident review, an employer process or a fitness to practise inquiry about clinical judgement, competence, scope of practice or patient safety, or working under conditions or supervision
Regulator covered: Applies to practitioners registered with the Medical Council, the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI), the Dental Council, the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland (PSI) or CORU
Length: 10 sections, 72 lessons, 2 CPD hours
Format: Self-paced, online, immediate access, twelve months from purchase
Certificate: Certificate issued by Healthcare Ethics Courses on completion, dated, with the course title and 2 CPD hours
Price: €100 · from €70 a course (Bulk Buy of 10)

Certificate issued by Healthcare Ethics CoursesRemediation courses for regulatory processes.

2CPD hours, issued by Healthcare Ethics Courses

10Sections, nine closing with a reflective quiz

72Lessons, plus a post-course assessment

€100 (€70 with Bulk Buy 10)One off. Twelve months' access

The certificate you will receive

Sample certificate of continuing professional development for Ensuring Clinical Competence and Patient Safety, issued by Healthcare Ethics Courses, showing the name John Smith, 2 CPD hours and a date of completion, marked SAMPLE — Sample. Your certificate carries your name, the course title and the date you complete the course.

How healthcare professionals use it

With a written response to your regulator or its preliminary committee, alongside a reflection
When an undertaking or a consent is discussed, or in your evidence to an inquiry committee
As a dated record of remediation for the regulator when sanction is considered

Buy this course — €100 (€70 with Bulk Buy 10)

Who this course is for

Facing an allegation of poor professional performance

Poor professional performance is a ground of complaint for doctors, nurses and midwives, pharmacists and the CORU professions. The course treats competence as broader than technical skill: knowledge, skills, clinical judgement and professional behaviour, kept up over time (Section 2).

Facing a complaint to your regulator

The Medical Council, NMBI, the Dental Council, the PSI or CORU has written to tell you of a complaint. Your first written reply is where your understanding of the clinical concern is read first. Section 9 sets out what a response should include.

After a serious incident or an employer review

An adverse incident, a near miss or a pattern of errors has led to an internal investigation. Section 7 covers the immediate response to an error, openness and candour, employer investigations and your behaviour during them.

Under interim measures, conditions or supervision

Supervision, restricted duties, limits on your scope of practice or further assessment while the concerns are addressed. Section 8 covers interim measures and conditions on practice, and demonstrating safe future practice.

Returning to practice or starting a new role

A return after illness, suspension or extended leave, a new specialty, a locum post. Section 3 covers transitions and new roles as high-risk periods, and the induction, supervision and questions they need.

Facing a fitness to practise inquiry

The complaint has gone to a Fitness to Practise Committee, a Professional Conduct Committee or a Health Committee. Remediation completed before the hearing, dated and documented, is evidence you can put before the committee and the regulator.

The concerns this course speaks to

Working beyond your competence

A task or decision outside your scope, taken on under pressure or without support. Section 2 covers scope of practice, the limits of competence, maintaining competence over time, and the difference between confidence and overconfidence.

Workload, fatigue and health

Long shifts, interruptions, fatigue, ill health or burnout. Section 3 covers the factors that affect competence — workload, health and wellbeing, transitions, knowledge gaps, systems and human factors — and the early warning signs.

Errors and near misses

A missed diagnosis, a medication error, a failure to escalate. Section 7 covers errors in clinical practice, the immediate professional response, how errors lead to complaints, and learning from them.

Patient safety and escalation

Early signs of risk noticed but not acted on, or a concern escalated once and dropped. Section 5 covers early indicators of risk, responding to immediate risks, system-level concerns, and what to do when concerns are not addressed.

Professional behaviour with patients and colleagues

A concern about how you behave with patients or colleagues can sit beside a clinical one. The course treats professional behaviour — reliability, integrity, communication, and respect for patients and colleagues — as part of clinical competence (Section 2), and covers raising concerns about a colleague’s practice (Section 5) and delegating to a colleague safely (Section 6).

Records and clinical governance

Notes that do not show the assessment, the reasoning or the escalation. Section 6 covers what regulators expect to see in clinical records, documentation as evidence of judgement, supervision and clinical governance.

Human factors and the system

Understaffing, poor handover, IT systems, cognitive bias. Sections 3 and 4 cover human factors and why errors occur; the course is clear that system pressures may explain an incident but do not remove professional accountability.

Insight and attitude during the process

Minimising, blaming colleagues or systems, poor engagement with supervision. Section 8 covers how regulators assess clinical competence, the importance of insight, and the attitude and behaviour that increase regulatory concern.

Facing a complaint to your regulator or a fitness to practise inquiry? This course helps you remediate — and show it.

Buy this course — €100 (€70 with Bulk Buy 10)

What the course covers

Ten sections and 72 lessons, with a reflective quiz closing each of the first nine and a post-course assessment at the end.

Section 01

Introduction to Clinical Competence and Patient Safety

Five lessons

Section 02

Understanding Clinical Competence

Six lessons

Section 03

Factors That Affect Clinical Competence

Seven lessons

Section 04

Patient Safety Principles in Healthcare Practice

Seven lessons

Section 05

Recognising and Responding to Safety Concerns

Nine lessons

Section 06

Documentation, Supervision, and Clinical Governance

Nine lessons

Section 07

Errors, Complaints, and Investigations

Eight lessons

Section 08

Fitness to Practise and Regulatory Expectations

Eight lessons

Section 09

Reflection, Insight, and Remediation

Eleven lessons

Section 10

Conclusion and Key Takeaways

Two lessons, Conclusion and Key Takeaways, and the post-course assessment

Show every lesson title

Section 01 · Introduction to Clinical Competence and Patient Safety: Why Clinical Competence Matters; Clinical Competence as a Professional Responsibility; The Link Between Competence and Patient Safety; Patient Safety as a System and Individual Issue; Trust, Confidence, and Professional Reputation.
Section 02 · Understanding Clinical Competence: What Clinical Competence Really Means; Competence Is Role-Specific and Context-Dependent; Scope of Practice and Limits of Competence; Maintaining Competence Over Time; Recognising Early Signs of Competence Gaps; Competence, Confidence, and Overconfidence.
Section 03 · Factors That Affect Clinical Competence: Workload, Fatigue, and Cognitive Overload; Physical Health, Mental Health, and Wellbeing; Transitions, New Roles, and Changing Responsibilities; Knowledge Gaps and Outdated Practice; Systems, Resources, and Working Environment; Human Factors and Cognitive Bias; Recognising Early Warning Signs of Compromised Competence.
Section 04 · Patient Safety Principles in Healthcare Practice: What Patient Safety Means in Daily Practice; Risk Identification and Risk Management; Human Factors and Why Errors Occur; Safety Culture and Learning Environments; Incident Reporting and Learning From Near Misses; Communication, Teamwork, and Safety; Individual Responsibility Within Systems.
Section 05 · Recognising and Responding to Safety Concerns: Patient Safety as an Ongoing, Active Process; Recognising Early Indicators of Risk; Safety Concerns Related to Clinical Competence; Responding to Immediate Safety Risks; Raising Concerns About Colleagues’ Practice; Recognising and Responding to System-Level Safety Concerns; Overcoming Barriers to Speaking Up; Documentation as a Safety Tool; When Safety Concerns Are Not Addressed.
Section 06 · Documentation, Supervision, and Clinical Governance: Why Documentation Is Central to Clinical Competence and Safety; What Regulators Expect to See in Clinical Records; Documentation as Evidence of Clinical Judgement; Supervision as a Patient Safety Safeguard; Delegation and Supervision Responsibilities; Clinical Governance and Patient Safety Systems; Documentation and Governance in Investigations; Professional Accountability Within Systems; Regulatory Expectations in Ireland.
Section 07 · Errors, Complaints, and Investigations: Understanding Errors in Clinical Practice; Immediate Professional Response to an Error; Openness, Honesty, and Duty of Candour; How Errors Lead to Complaints; Employer and Organisational Investigations; Regulatory Investigations and Fitness to Practise; Professional Behaviour During Investigations; Learning From Errors and Complaints.
Section 08 · Fitness to Practise and Regulatory Expectations: What Fitness to Practise Means in the Context of Patient Safety; How Patient Safety Concerns Escalate to Regulatory Review; How Regulators Assess Clinical Competence; The Importance of Insight in Fitness to Practise; Attitude, Behaviour, and Regulatory Risk; Interim Measures and Conditions on Practice; Demonstrating Safe Future Practice; Professional Responsibility During Regulatory Processes.
Section 09 · Reflection, Insight, and Remediation: Reflection as a Core Professional Skill; What Meaningful Reflection Looks Like; Insight: How Regulators Assess It; Reflecting on Clinical Judgement and Decision-Making; Reflecting on Behaviour, Communication, and Professionalism; Reflecting on Systems, Environment, and Human Factors; From Reflection to Remediation; Types of Remediation in Clinical Practice; Evidence of Remediation and Sustained Change; Rebuilding Confidence, Trust, and Professional Standing; Reflection as a Continuous Process.
Section 10 · Conclusion and Key Takeaways: Conclusion; Key Takeaways.

How to respond to a competence or patient safety complaint

Whether it is read by your employer, a preliminary committee or an inquiry committee, a response about competence is read for whether you can practise safely now and in future. These are the four parts to set out, and what the course gives you for each.

An error shows what happened once; your response shows whether you can practise safely now.

What went wrongThe facts, clearly, including what was missed and when.Section 9 sets out insight as the regulatory lens: what went wrong, why, who was affected and which standards apply.
Why it went wrongYour judgement, and the personal, team and system factors, without justification.Section 9 has lessons on reflecting on clinical judgement and on systems, environment and human factors.
Who was affectedPatients, families, colleagues and services, even where no harm followed.Section 9 covers insight into who was affected, and Section 4 patient safety in daily practice.
What has changedTargeted remediation with evidence, sustained over time.Section 9 covers the types of remediation and evidence of sustained change — and this course is a dated item for your portfolio.

An apology without changed practice gives no assurance about the next patient.

Take advice from your indemnifier, your union or professional body, or a solicitor before you respond to anyone.

Facing a complaint to your regulator or a fitness to practise inquiry? This course helps you remediate — and show it.

Buy this course — €100 (€70 with Bulk Buy 10)

How this course helps with a complaint or fitness to practise inquiry

Competence is a ground of complaint

Poor professional performance is a ground of complaint under the Medical Practitioners Act, the Nurses and Midwives Act, the Pharmacy Act and the Health and Social Care Professionals Act; CORU defines it as “any failure of the registrant to meet the standards of competence” (grounds for a complaint). At the Medical Council’s preliminary stage a doctor may be asked to “Undertake to be referred to a professional competence scheme” (2025 procedures). Doctors must undertake a minimum of 50 hours of CPD in each scheme year (S.I. 176/2025), and CORU registrants must achieve 30 CPD credits in every 12-month period (CORU CPD). The course covers maintaining competence (Section 2) and the factors that affect it (Section 3).

Insight decides what happens next

The Medical Council’s Guidance on Sanctions says a doctor may present evidence of how they have addressed issues or concerns, and its undertakings guidance names “the level of insight demonstrated by the Practitioner” among the factors it weighs. The Patient Safety (Notifiable Incidents and Open Disclosure) Act 2023 commenced on 26 September 2024 (all but section 68); since then, open disclosure of a notifiable incident has been required by law. Section 7 covers openness and candour after an error, Section 8 insight in fitness to practise, and Section 9 remediation and evidence of sustained change. For the stages from the first letter to the High Court, see the fitness to practise process in Ireland, explained.

Read the primary sources

Buy this course — €100 (€70 with Bulk Buy 10)

Who wrote it

Dr Shehzad Iqbal

Course author and facilitator, Healthcare Ethics Ireland

Dr Iqbal wrote this course. He combines clinical practice with a formal postgraduate qualification in healthcare law and ethics, and has worked with registrants across the regulated health professions, online and face to face, since 2020.

He founded Probity & Ethics in the United Kingdom in 2020 and Healthcare Ethics Courses, which issues the certificates, in 2025. More about us.

MBBS · MRCS · MRCGP · Postgraduate Certificate in Healthcare Law and Ethics, University of Dundee

Written and reviewed by Dr Shehzad Iqbal. Last reviewed 22 October 2026.

In short

Ensuring Clinical Competence and Patient Safety is a two-hour, self-paced remediation course for healthcare professionals in Ireland — registered with the Medical Council, NMBI, the Dental Council, the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland or CORU — who face a complaint, an incident review or a fitness to practise inquiry about clinical judgement, competence or patient safety. It covers competence as an ongoing professional responsibility; what clinical competence means, scope of practice and its limits, and maintaining competence over time; the factors that affect it — workload and fatigue, health and wellbeing, transitions, knowledge gaps, systems and human factors; patient safety principles, safety culture and incident reporting; recognising and responding to safety concerns, including about colleagues; documentation, supervision and clinical governance; errors, complaints and investigations; fitness to practise, interim measures and conditions; and reflection, insight and remediation. Ten sections, the first nine closing with a reflective quiz, a post-course assessment, and a dated certificate from Healthcare Ethics Courses. It is remediation and dated evidence of it; it decides no complaint, and it is not a substitute for advice from your indemnifier, your union or professional body, or a solicitor.

What clinical competence means to a regulator

Clinical competence is broader than technical skill or factual knowledge. The course defines it as up-to-date knowledge, practical skills, clinical judgement and professional behaviour, applied safely in real clinical settings (Section 2). It is role-specific and depends on context: a task that is safe in one setting may be unsafe in another, and a knowledgeable professional may still practise unsafely if judgement, behaviour or insight is lacking.

In a fitness to practise process, the course explains, the question is whether you can practise safely now and in future (Section 8). That is assessed across the nature and seriousness of the concerns, your knowledge, skills and judgement, your engagement with supervision, the quality of your records, and your willingness to recognise limits and seek help.

In a written response, say what went wrong and why, who was affected, which standard applies, and what you have changed, with evidence of sustained change such as audits and supervisor reports.

What these words mean

The three terms that decide where a complaint goes, and the words the course is built on.

Preliminary Proceedings Committee: The committee of the Medical Council, NMBI, the PSI and CORU that looks at a complaint before any inquiry: it may take no further action, suggest mediation, conclude the matter with an undertaking or a consent where its Act allows, or refer the complaint to an inquiry. At the Dental Council, the Fitness to Practise Committee considers whether there is a prima facie case.
Fitness to practise inquiry: The hearing stage: before the Fitness to Practise Committee at the Medical Council, NMBI and the Dental Council, and before the Professional Conduct Committee or the Health Committee at the PSI and CORU. Any sanction heavier than an advice, admonishment or censure takes effect only when the High Court confirms it.
Professional misconduct: A ground of complaint under the Medical Practitioners, Nurses and Midwives, Pharmacy and Health and Social Care Professionals Acts, and a ground for an application for an inquiry under the Dentists Act. The Dental Council describes it as a serious falling short in the standards expected of a dentist; the PSI as behaviour that goes against its Code of Conduct for registered pharmacists; CORU as any act, omission or pattern of conduct that breaches the Code.

Scope of practice, human factors and the other terms the course uses

Clinical competence: Knowledge, skills, clinical judgement and professional behaviour, applied safely and reliably in real clinical settings.
Scope of practice: What a professional is qualified, authorised and competent to do in their role.
Human factors: The predictable ways people interact with tasks, systems and environments that make errors more likely: distractions, task overload, reliance on memory, cognitive bias, alert fatigue.
Safety culture: A working environment in which professionals can speak up, admit mistakes and learn from errors, and in which responses to error are fair and proportionate.
Near miss: An event that could have caused harm but did not; the course treats reporting and learning from near misses as a marker of professionalism and insight.
Clinical governance: The systems through which healthcare organisations maintain and improve quality and safety: incident reporting, audit, risk management, policies, supervision and appraisal.
Interim measures: Steps taken to manage risk while a matter is open. An employer may restrict duties or arrange supervision; in Ireland a regulator can seek suspension from the High Court in the circumstances its Act sets out. The course treats such measures as protective, not punitive (Section 8).
Remediation: Actions that address the concern and reduce the risk of recurrence: directly relevant, proportionate, tailored to the role, realistic and time-bound.

The Acts a complaint is made and decided under

Ireland’s five health regulators each work under their own Act, all five amended by the Regulated Professions (Health and Social Care) (Amendment) Act 2020. These are the sections that say who may complain, on what grounds, and who looks at the complaint first.

Medical Council — Medical Practitioners Act 2007, section 57

A person, including the Council, may complain to the chief executive officer. The grounds include professional misconduct, poor professional performance, a relevant medical disability, and a failure to comply with a condition, an undertaking or a consent. The chief executive officer looks at the complaint first, an Authorised Officer may gather the facts, and the Preliminary Proceedings Committee decides whether there is enough cause to take further action. Read it.

For this course: Poor professional performance is a ground for doctors, and the PPC may ask for an undertaking to be referred to a professional competence scheme; Section 2 covers maintaining competence.

NMBI — Nurses and Midwives Act 2011, section 55

A person, including the Board, may complain to the chief executive officer. The grounds include professional misconduct, poor professional performance, non-compliance with a code of professional conduct, a relevant medical disability, and an irregularity in relation to the custody, prescription or supply of a controlled drug. A Preliminary Proceedings Committee, assisted by a case officer, may refer a complaint to the Fitness to Practise Committee for a sworn oral inquiry. Read it.

For this course: Poor professional performance is a ground for nurses and midwives; Section 5 covers recognising and responding to safety concerns.

Dental Council — Dentists Act 1985, section 38

The Council or any person may apply to the Fitness to Practise Committee for an inquiry, on grounds that include alleged professional misconduct and alleged unfitness to practise by reason of physical or mental disability. The Fitness to Practise Committee considers whether there is a prima facie case, and if there is, it holds the inquiry. Read it.

For this course: Section 6 covers clinical records, supervision and governance, and Section 7 errors and the professional response to them.

Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland — Pharmacy Act 2007, section 35

A complaint may be made in writing by or on behalf of any person, or by the registrar. The grounds include professional misconduct, poor professional performance, the effect on practice of a physical or mental ailment, emotional disturbance, or alcohol or drug addiction, and a failure to comply with a condition or an undertaking. The PSI separates a concern from a statutory complaint, which is for issues of a serious nature; its Preliminary Proceedings Committee may refer a complaint to a committee of inquiry or to mediation. Read it.

For this course: The PSI defines poor professional performance as a failure to meet the standards of competence reasonably expected of a pharmacist; Section 3 covers the factors that affect competence.

CORU — Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005, section 52

A complaint may be made to the Council by or on behalf of any person, or by a registration board. The grounds include professional misconduct, which CORU describes as any act, omission or pattern of conduct that breaches the Code, and poor professional performance. The Preliminary Proceedings Committee screens out complaints that are trivial, vexatious, without substance or made in bad faith; the Professional Conduct Committee deals with conduct or competence, and the Health Committee with whether a registrant’s health is affecting their ability to practise. Read it.

For this course: CORU defines poor professional performance as any failure to meet the standards of competence; Section 8 covers how regulators assess clinical competence.

Also engaged: Sanctions — advice, admonishment or censure, conditions, suspension and cancellation (erasure under the Dentists Act): Medical Practitioners Act s.71, Nurses and Midwives Act s.69, Dentists Act ss.39 to 41, Pharmacy Act s.48, Health and Social Care Professionals Act s.66 · High Court confirmation — the heavier sanctions take effect only when the High Court confirms them; an advice, admonishment or censure on confirmation or once the appeal window of 21 or 30 days passes without an appeal · The 2020 Act — the Regulated Professions (Health and Social Care) (Amendment) Act 2020, which amended all five Acts in stages from 2021 to 2025.

What happens after a complaint reaches an Irish regulator

Each regulator has its own Act and its own names for the stages, and your letter tells you which stage you are at. At each of them the same three things are worth showing in writing: that you see what went wrong, that you understand it against your regulator’s code, and what you have changed, with dated evidence.

The complaint and the grounds
Anyone may complain, including the regulator itself. Under the Medical Practitioners Act and the Nurses and Midwives Act the complaint goes to the chief executive officer; under the Pharmacy Act it may be made by or on behalf of any person or by the registrar; under the Health and Social Care Professionals Act by or on behalf of any person or by a registration board. Under the Dentists Act the Council or any person applies to the Fitness to Practise Committee for an inquiry. Professional misconduct is a ground of complaint under the four other Acts and, under the Dentists Act, a ground for an application for an inquiry.
The preliminary stage
The Medical Council, NMBI, the PSI and CORU each have a Preliminary Proceedings Committee. At the Medical Council the chief executive officer looks at a complaint first and may assign an Authorised Officer, and the committee decides whether there is enough cause to take further action. At NMBI the committee may refer a complaint to the Fitness to Practise Committee for a sworn oral inquiry, or suggest mediation or informal resolution; at the PSI it may refer a complaint to a committee of inquiry or to mediation; at CORU it screens out complaints that are trivial, vexatious, without substance or made in bad faith. At the Dental Council, the Fitness to Practise Committee considers whether there is a prima facie case.
Undertakings, consents and mediation
A complaint can be concluded by agreement in some cases. At the Medical Council’s preliminary stage a doctor may be asked to undertake not to repeat the conduct, or to consent to censure (2025 procedures). At NMBI in 2024, 12 undertakings or consents concluded matters at the preliminary stage and the Fitness to Practise Committee recommended 32 (State of Complaints 2024). Undertakings were the largest single Committee of Inquiry outcome in the cases CORU concluded in 2022 to 2024: 13, against 7 censures (trends report). In 2024 the Dental Council accepted undertakings from a dentist instead of making a High Court application (Annual Report 2024). Mediation at NMBI and CORU needs the consent of both sides.
The inquiry
The inquiry committee is the Fitness to Practise Committee at the Medical Council, NMBI and the Dental Council, and the Professional Conduct Committee or the Health Committee at the PSI and CORU. At NMBI allegations against a nurse or midwife must be proven beyond reasonable doubt. Medical Council inquiries are held in public unless the Council decides on a hearing in private or part private (Medical Council); CORU says its Professional Conduct Committee hearings are normally held in public and its Health Committee hearings normally in private.
The sanction and the High Court
Sanctions run from advice, admonishment or censure (admonishment or censure at the PSI and CORU) through conditions and suspension to cancellation, called erasure under the Dentists Act (MPA s.71, NMA s.69, Dentists Act s.39, Pharmacy Act s.48, HSCP Act s.66). The heavier sanctions take effect only when the High Court confirms them; an advice, admonishment or censure takes effect on confirmation or once the appeal window passes without an appeal: 21 days for doctors, nurses, midwives and dentists, 30 days for pharmacists and CORU registrants (MPA s.74, NMA s.72, Dentists Act s.41, Pharmacy Act s.50, HSCP Act s.68).
Interim measures and your first reply
Separately, the Medical Council says interim suspension is possible under section 60 of the Medical Practitioners Act 2007; where there is a serious and immediate risk, the PSI’s Council can seek suspension from the High Court; and the Dental Council may apply to the High Court for suspension under section 44 of the Dentists Act. None of the five regulators publishes a fixed deadline for a first reply: the Medical Council gives not less than two weeks to respond to an Investigation Report, and NMBI says you may request an extension of time. Take advice before you reply.

Facing a complaint to your regulator or a fitness to practise inquiry? This course helps you remediate — and show it.

Buy this course — €100 (€70 with Bulk Buy 10)

Courses with the Ethics and Professionalism pair written to your own regulator’s code — for doctors, nurses and midwives, dentists, pharmacists and all other healthcare professionals, or every course →

Frequently asked questions

What is poor professional performance?

A ground of complaint under the Medical Practitioners Act 2007, the Nurses and Midwives Act 2011, the Pharmacy Act 2007 and the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005. CORU defines it as any failure of the registrant to meet the standards of competence, and the PSI as a failure to meet the standards of competence reasonably expected of a pharmacist. The Dentists Act 1985 grounds include professional misconduct and unfitness to practise by reason of physical or mental disability.

The error happened because the ward was understaffed. Can I say so?

You can describe the system factors accurately; the course treats them as part of a balanced reflection. It is also clear that system pressures may explain an incident but do not remove professional accountability, and that blaming colleagues or systems without reflection increases concern. Name your own part, then the context (Sections 3, 8 and 9).

My health affected my practice. Is that covered?

Section 3 covers physical health, mental health and wellbeing as factors that affect competence, and what is expected: monitor your own health, seek support early, and change how you practise where safety could be affected. Each regulator deals with a health concern in its own way; take advice before you respond.

I am working under conditions or supervision. How can the course help?

Section 8 covers interim measures and conditions on practice, and the evidence that supports safe future practice: reflective writing, completed remediation plans, positive supervisor or employer reports and sustained improvement over time. The certificate is a dated record of 2 CPD hours to sit beside them; whether it meets a particular condition depends on its wording.

Should I take advice before I respond?

Yes — before anything is written to the regulator, a committee or your employer. Ask your indemnifier, your union or professional body, or a solicitor to read your response before it is sent, and keep a copy of everything you send. Nothing on this page is legal advice.

Can this course be used as evidence of remediation?

It can be part of the evidence, but no course decides a complaint. It gives you a dated certificate of 2 CPD hours. Section 9 covers the evidence that sits beside it: reflective writing, supervisor, mentor or employer feedback, audit results showing improvement, and examples of changed practice over time.

How long does it take, and how long do I have access?

The course is 2 CPD hours, self-paced, with access for twelve months from purchase. The certificate is issued on completion, dated, with the course title and the CPD hours. Whether the hours count towards your own CPD requirement is for your regulator or scheme to say: doctors must undertake a minimum of 50 hours in each scheme year, and CORU registrants must achieve 30 CPD credits in every 12-month period.

Can I get a certificate with a later date?

No. The certificate records the date you completed the course, and that date does not change. If your regulator, an inquiry committee or an employer asks for recent evidence, you buy the course again: half price within twelve months of your original purchase, the full €100 after that.

Will anyone be told that I am taking the course?

No. Nobody is told you are enrolled. We do not share participant details with any regulator, an employer, a union or an indemnifier; the certificate reaches them only if you attach it to your own response.

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