Clinical Governance @ MedicalCert

Responsibility for a clinical decision sits with the doctor who makes it. The doctors who work through MedicalCert are self-employed independent practitioners. Each holds their own registration with the General Medical Council and answers to the GMC directly for the decisions they take. MedicalCert does not employ them, plays no part in their clinical judgement, and does not benefit from a request being approved rather than declined. Nobel Medical LLC handles payment processing and platform administration. Administration is not clinical oversight and does not stand in place of the professional regulation that applies to each doctor personally. The platform does not revalidate or appraise doctors either. Revalidation and appraisal are General Medical Council processes, carried out through a doctor’s own designated body. Dr Maria Knobel, Medical Director, GMC 7495073, is responsible for the clinical standards framework the platform operates to and for the recruitment of the doctors who work through it. That role does not extend to reviewing individual consultations. Each request is assessed by the doctor it is sent to.

Medical certificate requests submitted through MedicalCert are sent directly to independent GMC-registered doctors for review. The reviewing doctor applies clinical judgement when assessing whether medical documentation can be issued based on the information provided during the consultation. The doctor reviews relevant medical history and contextual information provided by the patient in order to determine whether issuing documentation would be clinically appropriate. Where a request cannot be supported clinically, the reviewing doctor will not issue documentation.

Online consultations allow doctors to review health information remotely. However, there are situations where remote assessment may not be suitable. Examples may include cases where:

• additional medical investigation or physical examination is required
• insufficient information is available for the reviewing doctor to assess medical risk
• a condition may require in-person medical care

In such circumstances, the reviewing doctor may advise the patient to see their own GP, or another appropriate healthcare professional, in person.

Patient safety is central to how doctors on the MedicalCert platform operate. Medical documentation is not automatically issued and remains subject to the reviewing doctor’s independent clinical assessment. The reviewing doctor considers whether issuing documentation would be appropriate in light of the information provided and the purpose of the requested certificate. The reviewing doctor will decline a request where issuing documentation would not be medically appropriate.

Medical decisions relating to certification are made by the independent GMC-registered doctor based on the information submitted during the consultation. This may include relevant medical history, symptoms, and contextual information relating to the certificate request. The reviewing doctor applies clinical judgement on a case-by-case basis. The purpose of the review is to determine whether the available information supports the issuing of medical documentation. The acceptance of any medical certificate by third parties (such as airlines, insurers, employers, or event organisers) is determined by those organisations.

If something has gone wrong, email the support team with the word Complaint in the subject line. Every complaint is acknowledged within three working days, and that acknowledgement names who is handling it and says how long the review is expected to take. The full route, including what to do if the response does not settle the matter, is set out on the Complaints and Feedback page. Concerns about the professional conduct or fitness to practise of a reviewing doctor can be raised directly with the General Medical Council. The reviewing doctor’s name and GMC number appear on every document the platform issues, so their register entry can be checked directly.

Further information about MedicalCert’s processes and standards can be found in the following pages:

• Editorial Policy
• Clinical Review Process
• Code of Practice
• Our Doctors