Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspections on general practice should be arranged by risk, the Family Doctor Association (FDA) has claimed.
A statement from the organisation questions whether CQC inspection is using a “sledgehammer to crack a nut”, stating there could be other ways to bring the lowest performing 1-2% of practices up to the required level.
The FDA states that CQC registration requires a week of practice manager time and 1-2 days of a GP partner’s time, too.
Although the FDA accepts that the CQC is enshrined in legislation, it proposes that low risk practices should be inspected less frequently.
Also, a reduction of the 28-page application form would be a “quick win according to the organisation,
The statement said: “How many lives will universal CQC inspections of general practice save annually? Remember general practice is already one of the lowest risk healthcare environments.
“What does this bureaucracy mean in terms of patient opportunity costs? The annual inspection/retention fee will also drain resources from practices already struggling to make ends meet.”
Instead, practices should invest in quality premises and use existing local knowledge and existing performance management tools to uncover bad practice, the FDA stated.
