- AB0203 - RCVS - Preliminary Investigation Committee (PIC) 1 Lay Member & 1 Reserve Lay Member & Registered Veterinary Nurse (RVN) for the Charter Case Committee (CCC). Closing date: 17 March 12 noon
- About the RCVS and the Councils
- Person Specification
- Timeline, Application Process and How to apply
- Diversity and Inclusion Monitoring
- Annex A: The seven principles of public life
- Annex B: Extract from the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons Preliminary Investigation Committee and Disciplinary Committee Protocol 2022
- Annex C: Charter Case Protocol
- Annex D: Charter Case Rules
- Annex E) Link to the PIC manual
- Advert PDF
- Candidate Brief PDF
About the RCVS and the Councils
The RCVS was established in 1844 by Royal Charter to be the governing body of the veterinary profession. Its statutory duties are currently laid out in the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966. The RCVS safeguards the interests of the public and animals by ensuring that only those registered can carry out acts of veterinary surgery.
The RCVS aims to enhance society through improved animal health and welfare and does so by setting, upholding and advancing the educational, ethical and clinical standards of veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses.
The RCVS is an organisation of two parts:
A regulator, with responsibilities set out in the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966 and arising via its Supplementary Charter 2015:
- To maintain a Register of Veterinary Surgeons entitled to practice in the UK
- To maintain a Register of Veterinary Nurses entitled to practice in the UK
- To regulate veterinary education and the standards required for inclusion on the Registers
- To regulate professional conduct of both veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses through Codes of Professional Conduct; investigating concerns and potentially removing names from the Register
A Royal College, with powers under the Royal Charter of 1844 and the Supplemental Charter of 2015:
- To award postgraduate qualifications, including Fellowships and Certificates
- To maintain a list of veterinary surgeons who are RCVS Specialists
- To inspect and accredit practices in accordance with the voluntary Practice Standards Scheme
- To support RCVS Knowledge and the development of veterinary science
- To provide a source of information and opinion on relevant veterinary matters.
In addition, we also:
- Register veterinary practice premises where veterinary medicines are stored or supplied, on behalf of the Veterinary Medicines Directorate.
- Maintain, a list of approved riding establishment inspectors.
On registering all members declare that they “will pursue the work of the profession with integrity, and that their constant endeavor will be to ensure the health and welfare of animals committed to their care”. Our combined role, as regulator and Royal College, is to ensure that veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses live up to this promise. http://www.rcvs.org.uk/about-us/royal-charter-and-legislation/.
RCVS & RVN Committees
The RCVS regulates the educational, professional and ethical standards of all veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses, regardless of the kind of work they do. A robust investigation and disciplinary mechanism is in place and will be triggered if a veterinary surgeon or nurse falls short of the standards expected by the profession and the public. The statutory functions are set out in the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966, and Supplemental Royal Charter 2015. Veterinary Nurses follow the same processes as veterinary surgeons as confirmed in the Veterinary Nurse Conduct and Discipline Rules 2014 (see Annex C).
The Act requires the governing Council of the college to establish a Preliminary Investigation Committee (PIC) and a Disciplinary Committee (DC). The task of the PIC/RVN PIC is to investigate any case in which it is alleged that a veterinary surgeon or nurse is liable to be removed from the register of veterinary surgeons and nurses, or suspended from the register for a period, by reason of serious professional misconduct. After investigation, the PIC/RVN PIC decides whether to refer the case to the DC/RVN DC.
If a case is referred, the DC/RVN DC hears the evidence, determines the facts and, amongst other sanctions, has power to direct that the name of the person concerned should be removed from the register or that registration should be suspended for a period of time. The DC/RVN DC also deals with applications for restoration to the register following removal.
The Charter Case Committee offers an alternative to a disciplinary hearing in certain cases where specified criteria has been met. This is via a system of public or private warnings. The Protocol governing this Committee and its Rules are set out respectively in Annexes D and E.
Working methods:
On average around 600 concerns about veterinary surgeons are reported to the RCVS each year and considerably lesser numbers for veterinary nurses. As explained below, all of these are considered by a Stage 1 PIC and around a fifth are investigated by the Stage 2 PIC.
Stage1 PICs are made up of three members (for veterinary cases, this will include one veterinary surgeon, one lay member and one other; for veterinary nursing cases, this will include one veterinary nurse, one lay member and one other, which may be a veterinary surgeon) who are assisted by a Case Manager from the Professional Conduct Department. Stage 1 PICs consider concerns on the basis of documentary evidence (including information submitted by the complainant and the respondent veterinary surgeon/nurse). If the Stage 1 PIC considers that there is no realistic prospect of establishing serious professional misconduct it may close a case with or without issuing advice.
If it considers that further information is required by way of expert reports and/or formal witness statements before a decision can be made, it will refer matters to the Stage 2 PIC for its consideration.
The Stage 2 PIC is generally made up of five members and will meet every two weeks. (less frequently in the case of RVN PIC - see below)
It will decide whether to refer the case on to the DC and in certain circumstances may refer a case to the Charter Case Committee. Further details about the procedure can be found here: https://www.rcvs.org.uk/concerns/
Workload and time commitment:
The Stage 2 PIC
The Stage 2 PIC meets twice every month, and each member is required to attend around 10 meetings per year (up to one a month). One days’ preparation/reading time is available per meeting. These alternate between on-line video conferencing and face-to-face meetings (which are held in central London).
In addition, each member will also be part of one of the four Stage 1 PICs. The majority of input will be in writing to an individual case action/investigation plan. Time commitment for this is likely to be between a half, and a full day, per week but can vary depending on the volume of concerns at any given time. There is some flexibility for individual members in how they approach this as this is a remote process. However, it is expected that case responses will be submitted within a week; with follow up issues generally responded to within 48 hours.
Before concluding a decision on a case there will be a Stage 1 PIC decision meeting held by video conferencing. These meetings will be scheduled every two weeks and may be short depending on case numbers but it is expected that most of the decision making process will have been carried out previously on line, so each is generally very short (usually less than half an hour).
Taking all into account and including reading time, the time commitment estimated is five-six days per month per member.
The DC
The DC has a quasi-judicial role and procedure. The case is generally heard in public. The respondent veterinary appears before the panel, will frequently be legally represented and is subject to cross-examination; oral evidence is normally heard from witnesses; a legal assessor advises on points of law; and the committee retires to consider its findings and decisions in private.
Numbers of cases referred to the DC vary; but are generally in the region of 15 – 20 per year. Hearings are usually listed for between two and ten days, but very occasionally lasting up to 3 weeks . Listings are set some time in advance and individual members canvassed regarding their availability. There is an allowance of between half a day and a full day for reading time per case. Cases are generally held in person in central London, though some may be held remotely via video conferencing and/or in other locations. This will be notified to members at the same time as canvassing availability.
The Charter Case Committee
The Charter Case Committee offers an alternative to a disciplinary hearing in certain cases where specified criteria have been met. These are matters that have crossed the threshold of serious professional misconduct, but are not considered to be of such seriousness that it would be in the public interest for them to be considered by the DC. Such matters can be dealt with by means of public or private warnings. The protocol governing the CCC and its rules are set out respectively in annexes C and D.