Professional Standards Authority (PSA)
The Institute of Trichologists has been awarded the Quality Mark, and have been accredited by Professional Standards Authority (PSA), meaning we have met the PSA’s Standards which demonstrates our commitment to good practice and professionalism.
Patients, service users and the public can now choose a Trichologist belonging to a register vetted and approved by the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care, an independent statutory body, accountable to Parliament.
The Institute of Trichologists’ (IOT) UK register has been accredited under the Accredited Registers programme. Trichologists on the IOT’s UK register will be able to display the Accredited Register Quality Mark, a clear sign that they belong to a register which meets the Authority’s robust standards.
What does the PSA Quality Mark Mean?
The Quality Mark demonstrates that we are committed to protecting the public, have high standards for the people on our register and ensure that they are well-qualified, appropriately trained and professional in what they do.
- The IOT’s register now has the support of a government-backed initiative, giving the public independent assurance that we work to high standards and will take public safety seriously
- Clients, patients and the public will be able to trust and use services because the PSA’s Quality Mark gives them valuable reassurance about the IOT’s registrants’ technical skills, personal behaviour and business practice
- Practitioners on the IOT’s register will benefit from belonging to an organisation which is committed to high standards and public protection
- The IOT will now be recognised by commissioners and other public bodies as committed to good practice and professionalism
About the Professional Standards Authority
To help protect the public in the UK, medical professionals must register with a regulator which is the governing body responsible for their area of practice. For example, by law, doctors must register with the General Medical Council.
Many health occupations in the UK, however, are not obliged to do this. These are called unregulated roles. Some form their own organisations to develop and maintain high standards in their area of practice. These organisations may hold voluntary registers of practitioners who meet their standards of competence and behaviour, to reassure themselves and others that using a registered practitioner is safe.
The Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care (the Authority) set up the Accredited Registers programme in 2012 to ensure that voluntary registers are well run. The Authority checks all registers against its Standards in areas such as:
• Maintaining a public register
• Setting their own standards
• Education and training for practitioners
• Operating a complaints process
About Accredited Registers
Accredited Registers make sure that practitioners on their registers are well trained and meet their standards of practice, so that:
• Patients and service users can find the right person to treat them
• GPs can send patients to the right people when they ask for a recommendation
Accreditation means that a register has met the Authority’s demanding standards in the following areas: governance, setting standards for registrants, education and training, managing the register, providing information and complaints handling.
Accreditation does not mean that the Authority has endorsed the efficacy of a treatment or therapy practised, or any other service offered, by registrants on an Accredited Register.
Only registers accredited by the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care can use the Quality Mark. The Quality Mark is a quick and easy way to spot someone who is guaranteed to meet high standards of care.
Accreditation offers healthcare practitioners a means of demonstrating their personal commitment to meeting high standards by joining an Accredited Register.
Being accredited by the Authority offers enhanced protection to anyone seeking healthcare services. People now have the option of choosing practitioners on a register that has been vetted and approved.