Pulse covered DAUK’s response to Dr Vanshishtha’s case. Read more here.
Health Education England fails neurodiverse GP trainee by refusing to provide reasonable adjustments
The Doctors’ Association UK is shocked to hear of the treatment of neurodiverse GP trainee Dr Priyank Vashishtha, who was dismissed from his GP training programme in 2018 when his performance was judged to be unsatisfactory by Health Education England (HEE).
Dr Vashishtha has a diagnosis of both dyslexia, dyscalculia and dyspraxia and was assessed as needing reasonable adjustments for his education and practice by two independent assessors. None of these adjustments were upheld in the workplace or during his speciality examinations. Despite successfully passing the clinical skills assessment, he struggled to pass the computer based Applied Knowledge Test (AKT) in the absence of any modifications for his condition. He was denied a final attempt to pass this exam and dismissed from training. His right to appeal was also denied, despite having no access to reasonable adjustments or an independent panel. DAUK fully support Dr Vashishtha – you can support his Crowd Fund to raise funds for his legal battle with HEE.
Dr Vashishtha has been robbed of his career as a GP, despite receiving excellent patient feedback:
“He has been an absolute pleasure to see, and I trust him completely as my General practitioner. He has an excellent patient manner and makes me feel completely at ease”– Patient of Dr Vashishtha
