Call to reform Care Quality Commission

  Nine in 10 GP practices believe inspection ratings are too simplistic or misleading to measure quality of care accurately, a BMA survey reveals. Around 80 per cent of practices in England also say the CQC (Care Quality Commission) system of checking their services takes GPs away from patients and increases doctors’ stress levels. The BMA GPs committee, which ran the survey, says the findings highlight the ‘damaging, negative’ impact CQC inspections could have, which need wholesale reform. The results were released on the eve of this weekend’s special local medical committees conference where GPs will call for radical changes to the system, which they will say has ‘eroded morale’ and had an ‘adverse effect on the sustainability of general practice’. Commenting on the results of the survey, to which there were more than 1,900 respondents, GPC chair Chaand Nagpaul said: ‘This survey demonstrates the damaging, negative impact that the CQC’s failing inspection programme is having on patient care in general practice.  'GPs are being forced to divert valuable time away from treating patients towards the endless box ticking, paperwork and bureaucracy that is the hallmark of this programme.’   Wasted resources Dr Nagpaul said the results also showed how vital NHS resources were being wasted on employing locums and staff to cover practice work as GP surgery staff prepare for inspections. He added: 'I...
Source: BMA News - Category: UK Health Source Type: news