Thread by @chrisol1

1/ More (sorry) on the proposals for @rcpsych #AGM. Great improvement to have online voting, and separate votes for broadening electorate & use of postnominals. So an update on where I see things are currently and ongoing concerns.(Sign up here: rcpsych.ac.uk/about-us/our-p…) Thread:

2/ I think there is a lot of frustration from all sides that our ability to support #SAS doctors (experienced, psychiatrists who make up a high proportion of the workforce) has been caught up in wider changes of direction by the @rcpsych. Their input should be better valued.

3/ The process of scrutiny of the proposals seems to have fallen short, leading to last-minute changes of #AGM process and suggested separation of voting into 2 parts- (i) the changes to College electorate & (ii) introduction of new postnominals (which has been widely criticised)

4/ Key @RCPsych committees seem to have been unaware or not asked including Workforce, ETC, PTC, International Committee... but more importantly service users and carers not consulted. Council minutes are private but proposals submitted seem to have been more focused to #SAS

5/ So what's left. Firstly a vote on extending voting rights. This includes #SAS doctors (which I think has near-global support) but also to all #affiliates (a much wider group of non-consultant, non-trainee doctors without clear definition

6/ We don't know how the proposals will be split, but proposed voting rights also extended to International Associates (consultant-level doctors working overseas without MRCPsych exams); significantly NOT to premembership UK trainees who also pay @RCPsych (conspicuously missing)

7/ So possible that any measure to extend voting rights to #SAS could be caught up in excluding @rcpsychTrainees while recognizing #InternationalPsychiatrists - and concern from many about this (and reduced impetus to sort out properly in the future)

8/ Secondly - the postnominals. This presumably (we haven't seen how it will be split) includes the introduction of AffRCPsych, SpARCPsych (great initials btw✨) and ARCPsych. Will the changes to #FRCPsych to widen this to people without #MRCPsych be included here ? (maybe)

9/ Thirdly - the removal of the cap on #MentalHealthAssociate (allied MHPs in multidisciplinary teams). Don't have voting rights, and clearly well-intentioned, but re-lights recent issues on whether @rcpsych is about "psychiatry/psychiatrists" or "mental health". Existential q?

10/ Some personal thoughts (i) large numbers of people have been unaware of these proposals until this week (ii) this #AGM remains inaccessible for too many due to timing (iii) we need to do better to support our #SAS doctors in both the workplace and @rcpsych including voting

11/ (iv) A vote to extend voting to #SAS would have wide (?near universal) support but this is not what we have at present (#Affiliate ≠ #SAS, and wider expansion in proposals, see 5/,6/) (v) I would be unhappy voting for something that excludes @rcpsychTrainees

12/ (vi) introduction of postnominals & extending MHAs @rcpsych needs +++ engagement, discussion & consideration than it has been given.(vii) I hate putting this out, but should the proposals be withdrawn, & (even if involves delay) a better version supporting #SAS produced ?/end

@DrAdrianJames @TrudiSene1 @subodhdave1 @JohnHMCrichton @wendyburn @DrKateLovett @ProfRobHoward @rcpsychTrainees @RCPsychSASdocs @DrChloeBeale @raj_psyc @nanonanu @DD_Psych @dan_wilkes