How to Prepare for a MHPS Interview (Guidance for Doctors)

How to Prepare for a MHPS InterviewPreparing for a MHPS Interview Within the NHS – A Guide for Doctors

Attending a MHPS – Managing High Professional Standards in the NHS – interview can be a daunting experience. Following the issuance of Terms of Reference (ToR), an employer (through a designated investigator) will interview relevant witnesses to explore whether the concerns raised are supported by evidence or not. As part of the investigation, the doctor of concern will usually be interviewed.

Information about the allegation made is rarely disclosed prior to an interview. However, a doctor should request advance disclosure to see whether the NHS will make disclosures. In some instances, a doctor may feel ambushed if the evidence presented during an interview is complicated, and they might need to ask for an adjournment during the interview.

A doctor should consider what they know about the allegation, based on the ToR document, and ask their employer to obtain particular documentation that will or may be of assistance to them, in order to respond to interview questions.

The person investigating the allegations will often be accompanied by a note taker, who will make a record of the interview. Where information is brought to a doctor’s attention for the first time during an interview, and they could not anticipate the questions, it may be appropriate to ask for further information or documentation before answering the questions put.

On occasions, the answers a doctor commits to during a MHPS interview will be relied upon by an employer to undermine the doctor’s credibility, if they later say something that is inconsistent with their stated position in interview. Giving careful consideration to a question, and its wider implications, is an important aspect of planning an oral-response during a MHPS interview. On occasion it will be necessary for the doctor to step out of the interview, to take advice before answering. On some occasions it may be entirely appropriate not to answer a question, particularly if the answer would be an admission to a criminal offence. However, there is a tension here, in that by not answering it could undermine the trust and confidence that an employer places in its employee. Further, the failure to respond to a legitimate question might later lead to adverse inferences being drawn from the silence. While a MHPS interview is not like a police or PACE interview, there are some parallels.

It is important to take notes of the interview, so that any interview transcript that is later produced can be checked and corrected, as needs be.

The representatives at Doctors Defence Service have attended a number of MHPS interviews with doctors, and their advice and guidance has often been pivotal in the case against a doctor being dropped. We can advise doctors on how to prepare for an interview, and attend with them in many instances.

CHECKLIST* for Doctors Facing MHPS Interviews

In summary, a doctor facing a MHPS interview might do the following:-

    1. Read the Terms of Reference (ToR) carefully
    2. Seek clarification where the Tor are ambiguous
    3. Ask for advance Disclosure
    4. Identify the Issues that are likely to arise, and write a plan (themes, disclosures/admissions/denials/requests)
    5. Source the evidence in support of a defence, where appropriate but within appropriate boundaries
    6. Ask for certain named witnesses to be interviewed
    7. Undertake remediation where appropriate and provide evidence
    8. Write and present a reflection (if appropriate)
    9. Ask for clarification during the interview
    10. Take a friend or medical defence organisation representative with you
    11. Say sorry, if it is appropriate (with care) – duty of candour may apply, but saying sorry can demonstrate insight in some instances, and be looked on favourably by decision-makers
    12. Be careful about making admissions that might be an admission to a criminal offence
    13. Listen to the question and give it careful consideration before answering
    14. Take advice before answering (if necessary)
    15. Ask for a (brief or long) adjournment of the interview to obtain clarity or evidence
    16. Take regular breaks if the interview is likely to be a long one
    17. Take notes of the questions asked and the answers given
    18. Give the interviewer direction about enquiries or investigations they might pursue to assist the doctor’s case.
    19. Ask the interviewer to obtain documentation that will assist the doctor in answering questions. A second interview might be necessary, once the documentation is obtained.
    20. Don’t Panic. Ensure a calm composure. If one becomes upset, it may be necessary to terminate the interview to another day.
    21. Follow up the interview (if appropriate) with further information, where the doctor later recalls something that may be of assistance.

*Not an exhaustive checklist. This is not legal advice, but guidance as to what might be appropriate. 

For further reading, see our: Detailed Guidance on the MHPS Process.

If you are. doctor seeking advice on the MHPS Interview process, contact Doctors Defence Service on 0800 10 88 739