The Institute of General Practice Management (IGPM) has welcomed a report linking strong leadership with outstanding care and called for greater recognition of accredited leadership in primary care.
The King’s Fund report What Makes Care Outstanding? published last month, found that excellent leadership was a key feature of GP practices rated ‘outstanding’ by the CQC.
The King’s Fund was commissioned by the CQC to set out the principles of outstanding care and help health providers, as well as inspectors, distinguish outstanding care from ‘good’ care.
Leadership was one of five principles identified in the report.
The IGPM said: ‘For many years, the contribution of practice management leadership has been discussed largely in operational terms. This report reinforces what the profession has long understood: outstanding care is inseparable from outstanding leadership.’
It called for greater recognition of accredited professional leadership standards in primary care, saying the findings ‘strongly reflect what practice managers and management teams across general practice deliver every day’.
The IGPM said the report ‘rightly identifies’ that outstanding organisations are characterised by ‘compassionate and inclusive leadership’ as well as safe and effective systems.
It said: ‘These are not optional qualities. They are essential foundations of sustainable, high-quality care.’
The institute added that there was ‘now an opportunity to move beyond describing these leadership characteristics and towards recognising, developing and evidencing them consistently across primary care’.
A statement from the directors of the IGPM said: ‘Outstanding care does not happen by chance. It is created by cultures, teams and leaders who continuously invest in improvement, learning and people. Practice managers are central to creating those conditions, and professional accreditation has an important role to play in recognising and strengthening that leadership for the future.’
The IGPM said it developed its accreditation framework for practice managers – the MIGPM- to support leaders’ competence across leadership, governance, service improvement, workforce development, professional standards, and continuous learning.
The King’s Fund report found that ‘outstanding care happens when leaders foster an open, psychologically safe, inclusive and values-driven culture that is focused on people who use services and empowers staff.’
In addition to leadership, the other four principles of outstanding care were: delivering person-centred care; prioritising equity and inclusion; continuously integrating learning into practice to drive improvement and innovation; and having a purposeful approach to making a positive difference for people who use services.
