Recurring concern

Inadequate training and continuing-development requirements for unregulated healthcare practitioners

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First reported 7 Jul 2022•Latest report 28 Dec 2025

Definition

What this concern includes

Includes failures of regulatory, professional-association or practice-governance controls that leave practitioners in an explicitly unregulated healthcare or healthcare-adjacent practice without adequate initial training requirements, continuing professional development or competence-maintenance expectations, including Ayurvedic practice and non-therapeutic male circumcision.

Not included

  • Excludes generic training, staffing or professional-development deficiencies where the practitioner’s unregulated status or absence of effective competence requirements is not the identified unsafe condition.
  • Excludes regulated healthcare professions where the concern is failure to comply with otherwise adequate training or continuing-development requirements.
  • Excludes clinical competence, treatment or supervision failures that do not concern the adequacy of training or continuing-development requirements for an unregulated practitioner group.
  • Excludes unrelated counselling, clinical-condition, service-capacity and patient-care deficiencies merely because they could be influenced by practitioner competence.
Reports
3

Distinct published reports

Individual concerns
3

A report can raise multiple concerns

Date range
2022–2025

First to latest report issue date

Stated actions
0

Described in published responses

Reports over time

Reports over time

Reports about this concern issued each year.

* 2026 is projected from reports observed to 7 Sep 2026.

Most frequent recipients

Most frequent recipients

Reports about this concern sent to each recipient.

Department of Health and Social Care3
Ayurvedic Professionals Association1
Belmont Health Centre1
Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency1
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government1

Concerns and responses across reports

Only concerns grouped under this recurring concern are included. Select any concern, action or position to view the source wording.

  1. West London

    AI-generated summary

    Mohamed Abdisamad · Prevention of Future Deaths report

    This summary was generated using AI from the published report. Please read the original report for the complete account.

    Report summary

    Mohamed Abdisamad underwent a non-therapeutic male circumcision on 12 February 2023 and developed symptoms of illness three to four days later. He suffered a cardiorespiratory arrest while being taken to hospital and was declared dead on 19 February 2023; the inquest recorded invasive Streptococcus pyogenes infection following male circumcision as the medical cause of death. The report raised concerns about the lack of training, accreditation, record keeping, consent, infection-control requirements and aftercare requirements for individuals conducting such procedures.

    Read the report on judiciary.uk

    Source evidence

    How this individual concern was interpreted

    PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below.

    PFD Monitor interpretation

    Lack of training and continuing professional development requirements for NTMC practitioners

    Wider context from the report

    “1. Any individual may conduct a Non-Therapeutic Male Circumcision (NTMC) without any prior training or any Continuing Professional Development (CDP), ”

    Source location

    Mohamed Abdisamad · Prevention of Future Deaths report
    Page 2 · concerns

    Open source report

    Source evidence

    How this respondent position was interpreted

    PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.

    PFD Monitor interpretation

    Responsibility for the reported issues rests with DHSC, which has provided the comprehensive government response; MHCLG has nothing further to add.

    Verbatim wording from the response

    “MHCLG is responsible for the overall stewardship of the local government sector, but we are not responsible for all the services that councils deliver. Councils deliver a very wide range of services to residents, within a national legislative framework. Decisions around management are often taken locally, but the lead Government department for any particular issue delivered by a local authority is responsible for working with councils to ensure effective delivery.”

    Source location

    Response from MHCLG
    Page 1 · response
    Published 29 December 2025

    Open published response
  2. Dorset

    AI-generated summary

    Marnie Emma Hill · Prevention of Future Deaths report

    This summary was generated using AI from the published report. Please read the original report for the complete account.

    Report summary

    Marnie Emma Hill was found collapsed and unresponsive on a bed at a property where she was temporarily residing on 15 May 2022. The report raised concerns that the lack of regulation of counselling could lead to future deaths, including because counsellors are not required to report risks or share records with healthcare professionals.

    Read the report on judiciary.uk

    Source evidence

    How this individual concern was interpreted

    PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below.

    PFD Monitor interpretation

    Lack of requirements for counsellors’ further training and continual professional development

    Wider context from the report

    “1. During the inquest evidence was heard that: i. There is no regulation of counsellors in England and Wales and this could lead to future deaths. ii. ████████ is a private counsellor with 30 years’ experience who provided support to Marnie prior to her death. She confirmed that counselling is not a regulated professional and there are courses available at a cost of £29 for a 6 week course, after which a person can receive a diploma and call themselves a counsellor. There is no requirement for them to do further training or continual professional development. There are no rules or regulations about how counsellors should operate, for example how they keep and share records. iii. Information shared by an individual to a counsellor may disclose a risk of self harm or suicide, or harm to another and there is no requirement for a counsellor to report that information to any third party. iv. ████████ ████████ gave evidence that the lack of regulation and licensing of counsellors could lead to a lot of damage being done to individuals seeking help and that this could present a risk to life as there is no regulation around informing medical professionals or others who can provided further support and care to the individual. v. Evidence was also given by ████████, one of the GPs who provided care to Marnie, that receipt of records from others such as counsellors, especially at the end of the counselling, would assist her in providing care to patients. 2. I have concerns with regard to the following: i. There is a risk of future deaths occurring due to the lack of regulation of the counselling profession. ”

    Source location

    Marnie Emma Hill · Prevention of Future Deaths report
    Page 2 · concerns

    Open source report

    Source evidence

    How this respondent position was interpreted

    PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.

    PFD Monitor interpretation

    Training standards and practice requirements set by independent counselling organisations are outside Government oversight.

    Verbatim wording from the response

    “All of the organisations utilising the SCoPEd framework are independent, representative bodies for the practice of counselling and psychotherapy. As such, they do not fall under Government oversight and therefore any decisions about the training standards and practice requirements for the professions they represent are a matter for those organisations and their members.”

    Source location

    Response from Department of Health and Social Care
    Page 3 · response
    Published 30 October 2023

    Open published response

    Source evidence

    How this respondent position was interpreted

    PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.

    PFD Monitor interpretation

    Independent counselling organisations and their members are responsible for decisions about training standards and practice requirements.

    Verbatim wording from the response

    “All of the organisations utilising the SCoPEd framework are independent, representative bodies for the practice of counselling and psychotherapy. As such, they do not fall under Government oversight and therefore any decisions about the training standards and practice requirements for the professions they represent are a matter for those organisations and their members.”

    Source location

    Response from Department of Health and Social Care
    Page 3 · response
    Published 30 October 2023

    Open published response
  3. Inner North London

    AI-generated summary

    Seema Pravin HARIBHAI · Prevention of Future Deaths report

    This summary was generated using AI from the published report. Please read the original report for the complete account.

    Report summary

    Seema Haribhai, who had increasingly disabling psoriatic arthritis, took herbal remedies prescribed by an Ayurvedic practitioner and developed liver failure, dying some weeks later. The investigation determined that she died as a consequence of the administration of Ayurvedic medicines intended to treat psoriatic arthritis. Concerns included the practitioner’s failure to recognise the possible harm from the medicines or advise their immediate cessation, the lack of regulation and evidence of quality control, and shortcomings in the GP’s assessment and response to her symptoms and abnormal blood test.

    Read the report on judiciary.uk

    Source evidence

    How this individual concern was interpreted

    PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below.

    PFD Monitor interpretation

    Insufficient continuing professional development training for Ayurvedic practitioners

    Wider context from the report

    “I heard evidence at inquest that Ayurvedic practitioners are not in any way regulated. Even those who are members of the Ayurvedic Professionals Association receive as little as two hours of continuing professional development training per annum. ”

    Source location

    Seema Pravin HARIBHAI · Prevention of Future Deaths report
    Page 3 · concerns

    Open source report
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Data last updated 7 September 2026