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- Page navigation anchor for RE: Subject: CQC Inspections : Getting from "good" to betterRE: Subject: CQC Inspections : Getting from "good" to betterLike Dr Temple I am an enthusiast for quality improvement in primary care and have also invested considerable amounts of time as a quality champion in our local health economy. The quality challenges within the practice are so much easier than those across local health economies, and it has never seemed particularly difficult to steer the practice towards the highest standards. Reflection on the vast array of quality data available gives ample reassurance that the practice has managed to stay at the top end of the quality spectrum, and the extremely high patient satisfaction scores in turn reflect that we are best serving those who use the service.Following our CQC inspection, my initial response to being the custodian of a simply "Good" practice was disappointment and not a little resentment. My report appears to be the same "cut and pasted" report given to my local colleagues, and indeed to those who are deemed to be "outstanding" across the country. There is not a single suggestion on how we are to progress from "Good" to "Outstanding".I have since relaxed and am content to be "good whilst trying to be better". I had hoped the much hyped CQC inspection would be a useful and formative process, enabling practices to progress the Quality Agenda. To satisfy the political drivers, the CQC must demonstrate authority and robustness of method...Show MoreCompeting Interests: None declared.
- Page navigation anchor for RE: CQC Intelligent MonitoringRE: CQC Intelligent MonitoringI would hope that Steve Field, maintaining the transparency to which he and the CQC aspire, will review the effect of publishing their 'Intelligent Monitoring' (IM) on the practice in which I was proud to be a partner for 29 years.The announcement of the practice's IM putting it in the lowest banding (Band 1) came as a real shock to the doctors, nurses and office staff and, most notably, a large number of the 29000 patients.The 'Outstanding' result of the ensuing CQC inspection made the IM seem exceedingly fallible in its apparent lack of both content, and face, validity.Might the CQC's transparency now both allow it to publish any discussions about the utility of the words 'Intelligent' and 'Monitoring' in this context and make any apologies to those, for whom IM has proved both inaccurate and reputationally risky, highly visible?Competing Interests: None declared.
- Page navigation anchor for The Care Quality Commission (CQC) Inspections not 'outstanding', may be 'good' but ‘requires improvement’The Care Quality Commission (CQC) Inspections not 'outstanding', may be 'good' but ‘requires improvement’I am an enthusiast for quality improvement and have led my practice in external validation of our quality for 30 years. Among other quality tests this includes completing the RCGP Quality Practice Award (QPA) three times. The QPA was difficult but fair. All the criteria and standards were explicit and took about a year to complete and document in advance of a full day inspection of the practice by a team of thoughtful QPA inspectors.In contrast I am dismayed by the mission creep of CQC inspections, some of its faux quality and its ratings approach to improvement at a time when general practice is struggling on so many fronts (e.g. workload, recruitment, morale). I worry that CQC is currently causing more problems than it is solving (e.g. workload, recruitment, morale) which in turn may worsen quality. There are many ways that quality can be assessed and although it's reasonable to expect that a practice is safe, effective, caring, responsive to peoples needs and well lead; you also need explicit criteria that are good ways of assessing these CQC five key questions and you need sensible standards of achievement for each criteria. It is then reasonable to publish a practices achievement against each criteria and standard. We should never be surprised that 50% of practices are rated below average for one or more criteria, or that 25% of practices are in the lowest quartile. At the time of writing my practice has not been inspected but we...Show MoreCompeting Interests: None declared.