Disciplinary

Disciplinary Procedures

The jurisdiction of the Council extends to ensuring proper professional conduct amongst the members of the profession and to applying a range of sanctions, up to and including erasure from the Register on any registered person. A registered person can be sanctioned if (a) convicted of an offence triable on indictment (b) found guilty of professional misconduct; (c) medically unfit to practise; (d) providing false registration information or (e) failing to comply with the Veterinary Practice Act 2005. Failure to adhere to the standards laid down in the Code of Professional Conduct could also lead to sanctions. The Code of Professional Conduct lays down the rules and principles which govern veterinary practitioners in the exercise of their profession. Adherence to the Code is frequently more exacting than conformity with the law and the standards required tend to be higher and more demanding that those required by law. The Council's Code of Professional Conduct is constantly reviewed and updated chapters will appear on the website as soon as they are adopted by the Veterinary Council.

The procedures for handling complaints against veterinary practitioners are laid down in Part 7 of the Veterinary Practice Act 2005. A useful Flow Chart  and Memorandum laying out these procedures have been developed. The following is a brief summary of the procedures. A complaint against a registered veterinary practitioner must be made in writing and will be considered in the first instance by the Council's Preliminary Investigations Committee which assesses the allegation, the evidence to support it and any comments or observations which the veterinary practitioner may have. The Council receives a report from the Committee on each complaint and if it decides that there is a case to answer will refer the complaint to the Fitness to Practise Committee. The Fitness to Practise Committee hears evidence from both sides and if it finds the practitioner guilty it reports this to the Council. Council can impose a range of sanctions, up to and including erasure from the Register. Details of how to make a complaint against a registered veterinary practitioner to the Council can be found by clicking here.