GDC publishes stakeholder perceptions research findings

The General Dental Council has published the findings from its Stakeholder Survey 2023, showing both the progress made in recent years and areas where further improvements are needed.

The latest survey shows modest improvements in how dental professionals view the GDC since 2020, with positive perceptions increasing from 16% to 20%, and negative views dropping from 65% to 56%. Dental students generally held more favourable opinions than other groups, with 26% expressing a positive view of the GDC.

Whilst registrants associated the GDC with many of the terms linked to our corporate strategy, such as professional and relevant – 50% and 44% respectively, other common associations included ‘fear’ and ‘unrepresentative’, both 46%. There was a positive shift, with registrants less likely to see the GDC as unrepresentative than in 2020, down to 46% from 54%.

Among students, fear was the most commonly associated word at just over half (53%) with knowledgeable second (41%). Other stakeholders most commonly associated the GDC with being unrepresentative (40%), followed by aggressive and defensive (both 34%).

The study, which combined quantitative and qualitative methods, gathered responses from more than 3200 registrants, as well as 106 students, and 68 stakeholders. It found strong awareness of our core functions, with 87% of respondents recognising our role in maintaining the dental register and 78% aware of our fitness to practise (FtP) responsibilities.

The fitness to practise process is a key factor influencing perceptions of the GDC and driving registrants’ fear. This fear often stems from hearing about others’ experiences, fostering anxiety about regulatory intervention which affects how care is delivered.

Stefan Czerniawski, Executive Director of Strategy at the GDC, said:

“It matters that the GDC is trusted by those we regulate, and it will not be trusted if perceptions are dominated by fear. We know there is more we need to do to reduce the stress of fitness to practise cases. We also want to work with others to counter negative perceptions and help dental professionals to understand what we do and how we do it – and demonstrate that we are more interested in supporting high professional standards than in catching people out.”

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