Three doctors were removed from the Medical Council’s register last year following fitness to practise inquiries.
There were 356 complaints made to the medical profession regulator in 2017, with almost one fifth of those relating to communication issues, according to its latest annual report.
Complaints are down from 411 in 2016 with other issues including adequate language skills, prescribing, physical and intimate examinations and maintaining accurate and up to date patient medical records.
William Prasifka, chief executive officer of the Medical Council said although complaints were slightly down, some areas of concern have emerged.
The Medical Council said communication complaints can vary in nature from a misunderstanding, a miscommunication, not explaining a diagnosis or treatment plan in an understandable or clear manner, a disagreement or personality clash.
“When communicating with patients a doctor should be honest and give all relevant information,” Mr Prasifka said.
“A doctor should welcome questions from patients and respond to them in an open, honest and comprehensive way.”
Key role
Mr Prasifka said patients also have a key role to play in maintaining good communications within the doctor-patient relationship.
“When you take a role in your own care and decisions about your treatment, you can improve your healthcare experience. Good communication is important for doctors to diagnose and treat you effectively,” he added.
The majority of complaints (293) came from members of the public followed by a healthcare professional (19) and the Medical Council itself (15).
A total of 42 fitness to practise inquiries were completed in 2017. Three doctors were removed from the register following inquiries while two were censured in writing and fined. Three doctors had conditions imposed on them by the Council while three others were advised by the regulator.
There were 22,649 doctors registered with the Medical Council last year, its highest ever membership and an increase of almost 1,000 on 2016.
Of those, 35 per cent are 35 years or younger. The gender breakdown of the register is 58 per cent male and 42 per cent female.
The Medical Council said for the first time the number of registered medical practitioners on the specialist division (9,306) surpassed that of practitioners on the general division (9,274).
The report states the Medical Council also began a four-year schedule of clinical training site inspections in 2017. These sites are where intern and specialist training is delivered and are required to meet standards set by the Medical Council.
Reports of visits to nine clinical training sites last year are due to be published in the near future, it said.
