TY - JOUR T1 - Mechanisms of revalidation JF - British Journal of General Practice JO - Br J Gen Pract SP - 640 LP - 641 VL - 55 IS - 517 AU - Malcolm Lewis Y1 - 2005/08/01 UR - http://bjgp.org/content/55/517/640.abstract N2 - In last month's edition of the Journal, Glyn Elwyn gave an overview1 of Mike Pringle's 2005 John Fry Fellowship Lecture.2 Pringle outlines the history of the General Medical Council's (GMC) plans for revalidation, the GMC's current thinking around revalidation, associated concerns expressed in the fifth report of the Shipman Inquiry,3 his concerns about the current state of revalidation and, finally, some options on the way forward. Elwyn also provided an eloquent summary of his own interpretation of the persisting concerns around appraisal.Pringle describes his disagreement with the GMC's position on revalidation and articulates thinking that is not all that dissimilar to the GMC's. Even more difficult to follow is the reconciliation between his definition of revalidation and his own options for delivery.Although Pringle interprets the legislation (that refers to revalidation as ‘evaluation of a medical practitioner's fitness to practice’) as focusing solely on … ER -