Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what training on Overactive Bladder care is provided to General Practitioners to help patient (1) diagnosis, and (2) referral to secondary care settings.

Each medical school in England sets its own undergraduate curriculum which must meet the standards set by the General Medical Council (GMC). The GMC would expect that, in fulfilling these standards, newly qualified doctors are able to identify, treat and manage any care needs a person has, including bladder conditions. General practitioners (GPs) use their clinical judgement, aligned with clinical evidence, to assess when it is appropriate to seek specialist expertise and refer the patient. GPs will first try resolve the issue in primary care and then refer to clinics for specialist assessment in secondary care.

The training curricula for postgraduate trainee doctors is set by the relevant Royal College and must also meet the standards set by the General Medical Council. The Royal College of General Practitioners’ curriculum is designed to integrate with the GMC’s generic professional capabilities framework, including clinical management and referrals to other care settings. Overactive bladder syndrome is listed in the clinical topic guides that supplement the curriculum.