There is no Nursing Council in Bhutan, therefore; nurses are regulated by Bhutan Health and Medical Council.

The Bhutan Medical and Health Council, which was established under the Medical and Health Council Act 2002, is the regulatory body for the medical and health professionals in relation to their professional responsibilities including ethical code of conduct. The council regulations stipulate that the registered members conform to accepted professional standard of care and practice. The council is empowered to initiate disciplinary actions against any erring practitioner to ensure that medical care is delivered in a safe and competent way.

A medical or health care professional may face disciplinary proceedings from an employer, professional body or the legal system. The flow chart in Appendix-I outlines the various routes available in Bhutan to sanctions for medical malpractice, which are not mutually exclusive.

Functions of BMHC

1. Regulate medical and health professionals working in Bhutan by maintaining a registry of such professionals and their compliance with ethical code of conduct and etiquette;
2. Institute disciplinary proceedings against a medical/health professional for medical malpractice or negligence suits;
3. Regulate the quality of medical education and training programmes by prescribing minimum standard requirements for infrastructure, course contents, curriculum and faculty members;
4. Recognize or de-recognize medical institutions and qualifications secured from within or outside Bhutan for the purpose of maintaining an optimum and uniform standard of medical and health professionals.
5. Prescribe regulations, guidelines and other documents for strengthening the practice of arts and science of medicine in the country.