Published: 27 January 2025
About the GMC regulation
On Monday 16 December 2024, our Physician Associate team hosted an event on our Tooting campus to recognise the launch of the GMC regulation of Physician Associates (PAs) and Anaesthesia Associates (AAs).
The regulation marks an important moment in UK healthcare and reflects a shared commitment to patient safety, professional excellence, and public confidence in these vital healthcare roles.
The GMC will now oversee the education and training of PAs, setting clear standards for the knowledge, skills, and behaviours expected of new graduates. Once registered, PAs and AAs must all follow the GMC’s standards set out in Good Medical Practice.
Celebrating a milestone together
Our PA team were joined by colleagues across St George’s School of Health and Medical Science and the Trust, including CMO, Dr Luci Etheridge and Group CEO, Jacqueline Totterdell, who both shared a few words at the event to recognise this important milestone for PAs and AAs. The team were also joined by former Course Directors and Deputy Course Directors from our PA programme, as well as current and former students.
Other guests included Dr Navina Evans (Chief Workforce, Training and Education Officer for NHS England), Dame Professor Clare Gerada (Past President Royal College of General Practitioners), Una Lane (Director, Registration and Revalidation for the GMC) and Chris Streather (Regional Medical Director for NHS England).
Reflecting on the regulation
Speaking about what the regulation means for clinical staff and students, Una Lane said:
“Now that the PA profession has become regulated, the GMC will formally agree the curriculum for every PA course across the UK, and we have already worked with course providers to ensure that existing teaching is in line with the GMC’s standards and the outcomes we expect.
We also set the standards for registration, which are based on our core standards in Good Medical Practice and the knowledge and skills we expect PAs to have achieved in their education and training.
We think that regulation will make an important contribution to patient safety and help reassure patients that the professionals who treat them meet very high standards of education and training. PAs play a very important part in a multidisciplinary team - supporting the treatment of, and providing continuity of care to, patients.
- Una Lane, Director, Registration and Revalidation for the GMC -
Dr Vasa Gnanapragasam, a former member of the PA teaching team at legacy St George’s and a local GP, spoke at the event. Vasa, who continues to teach on our Tooting Campus around other commitments, shared:
“I am proud that our staff have allowed the PA programme not just to survive, but thrive, and I would like to thank you all for coming this evening and standing shoulder to shoulder in support of PA students and the faculty.
- Dr Vasa Gnanapragasam, GP -
Jadaine Wright, a City St George's alumna and qualified PA working at St Georges, Epsom and St Helier Trust, spoke about the positive impact of the regulation for both staff and students:
“This is a very positive step both for students and from a regulatory perspective. It gives students confidence that when they qualify, they are regulated under the same body as other clinical staff. It will also boost patients’ confidence in PAs knowing that they are all working to the same high standards set out by the GMC.
- Jadaine Wright, a City St George's alumna -