General Medical Services Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1997

Removal from doctor’s list

22.—(1) Where a person no longer wishes to avail himself of general medical services—

(a) he may, at any time, give notice to the Agency that he wishes to be removed from a doctor’s list; and

(b) the Agency shall notify him and the doctor concerned that, on a specified date, being 14 days after the date of the receipt of the notice by the Agency, his name will be removed from the doctor’s list.

(2) Subject to paragraph (4), where the Agency is satisfied that a person on the list of a doctor providing general medical services no longer resides at a place where that doctor is under an obligation under these Regulations to visit and treat him, the Agency shall—

(a) inform that person and the doctor that the doctor is no longer obliged to visit and treat the person;

(b) advise the person in writing either to obtain the doctor’s agreement under paragraph 14(5)(b) of the terms of service to visit him if his condition so requires, or to seek acceptance for inclusion in the list of another doctor; and

(c) inform the person that if, after the expiration of 30 days from the date of the written advice mentioned in sub-paragraph (b), he has not acted in accordance with that advice, the Agency will remove him from the doctor’s list.

(3) If, at the expiration of the period of 30 days referred to in paragraph (2)(c), the Agency has not been notified of the action taken, it shall remove the patient from the doctor’s list and inform him and the doctor accordingly.

(4) Where a person on the list of a doctor providing general medical services has moved to an address outside the area in which the doctor has undertaken to provide such services or the address of that person is no longer known to the Agency, the Agency shall—

(a) give to that doctor notice in writing that it intends, at the end of the period of 6 months commencing with the date of the notice, to remove the person from the doctor’s list; and

(b) at the end of that period, remove the person from the doctor’s list, unless within that period the doctor satisfies the Agency that he is still responsible for providing general medical services for that person, including visiting and treating him when necessary.

(5) Where the Agency receives particulars of persons who are pupils at, or staff or residents of, a school or residential institution where a doctor provides general medical services, it shall remove from that doctor’s list any persons appearing on his list as pupils at, or staff or residents of, that school or institution who are not shown in those particulars.

(6) Where the Agency has made a request to a school or residential institution to provide the particulars mentioned in paragraph (5) and has not received them, it may, after consulting the doctor, remove from the doctor’s list any persons appearing on the list as pupils at, or staff or residents of, the school or institution.