By Richard Johnstone | 9 January 2013
The Care Quality Commission does not have the trust of the public and its role and duties must be clarified, MPs said today.
The health select committee’s annual examination of the health and social care watchdog concluded that its duties had not been properly defined and its responsibility for patient safety risked ‘being obscured by other competing priorities’.
Following the government’s reforms to the NHS, Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt should look again at the CQC’s responsibilities, the MPs said. These include inspections of hospitals and care homes to ensure care standards are being met.
In their report, 2012 accountability hearing with the Care Quality Commission, the MPs stated: ‘We recommend that the secretary of state should urgently work with the statutory regulators and commissioners of health and social care in order to simplify and clarify their respective roles.’
The CQC had not been able to gain public support for its inspection regime since it was established in 2008, the report found. It said the ‘essential standards’ of its inspections were not ‘a guarantee of acceptable standards in care’.
The report added: ‘As a result, patients, residents and relatives do not have confidence in the CQC’s standards or the outcomes of inspections.’
Public confidence had also been undermined by a ‘failure to address issues identified within its own management, organisation, functions and culture’ by whistleblower and former board member Kay Sheldon. It was ‘regrettable’ that Sheldon had to approach the public inquiry into failures at the Mid Staffordshire NHS trust to raise her concerns, MPs said.
‘It is essential that the CQC reforms its culture and working practices to address these shortcomings,’ committee chair Stephen Dorrell said.
He added: ‘The CQC’s primary focus should be to ensure that the public has confidence that its inspections provide an assurance of acceptable standards in care and patient safety. We do not believe that the CQC has yet succeeded in this objective.
‘The CQC needs to ensure that its inspections represent a challenging process which is designed to find service shortcomings where they exist, ensure when appropriate that service providers address them rapidly, and report promptly both to providers and users of the service.’
Responding to the report, the CQC said it had ‘consulted widely’ on a clear statement of its role as part of its strategic review last September.
Chief executive David Behan added: ‘We also set out our intentions to improve how we communicate with the public, make better use of information, and work more effectively as an organisation and with others, including those who provide care.
‘We have already begun to make some of these changes and will continue this process.’
A Department of Health spokeswoman said: ‘It is essential that patients know that they are getting the safest treatment and care possible, which is why having a strong and effective regulator of health and care services is vital.
‘Much of the report’s focus is on the inspection and registration process, and we look forward to the CQC's response under its new leadership.’
The Care Quality Commission does not have the trust of the public and its role and duties must be clarified, MPs said today.
The health select committee’s annual examination of the health and social care watchdog concluded that its duties had not been properly defined and its responsibility for patient safety risked ‘being obscured by other competing priorities’.
Following the government’s reforms to the NHS, Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt should look again at the CQC’s responsibilities, the MPs said. These include inspections of hospitals and care homes to ensure care standards are being met.
In their report, 2012 accountability hearing with the Care Quality Commission, the MPs stated: ‘We recommend that the secretary of state should urgently work with the statutory regulators and commissioners of health and social care in order to simplify and clarify their respective roles.’
The CQC had not been able to gain public support for its inspection regime since it was established in 2008, the report found. It said the ‘essential standards’ of its inspections were not ‘a guarantee of acceptable standards in care’.
The report added: ‘As a result, patients, residents and relatives do not have confidence in the CQC’s standards or the outcomes of inspections.’
Public confidence had also been undermined by a ‘failure to address issues identified within its own management, organisation, functions and culture’ by whistleblower and former board member Kay Sheldon. It was ‘regrettable’ that Sheldon had to approach the public inquiry into failures at the Mid Staffordshire NHS trust to raise her concerns, MPs said.
‘It is essential that the CQC reforms its culture and working practices to address these shortcomings,’ committee chair Stephen Dorrell said.
He added: ‘The CQC’s primary focus should be to ensure that the public has confidence that its inspections provide an assurance of acceptable standards in care and patient safety. We do not believe that the CQC has yet succeeded in this objective.
‘The CQC needs to ensure that its inspections represent a challenging process which is designed to find service shortcomings where they exist, ensure when appropriate that service providers address them rapidly, and report promptly both to providers and users of the service.’
Responding to the report, the CQC said it had ‘consulted widely’ on a clear statement of its role as part of its strategic review last September.
Chief executive David Behan added: ‘We also set out our intentions to improve how we communicate with the public, make better use of information, and work more effectively as an organisation and with others, including those who provide care.
‘We have already begun to make some of these changes and will continue this process.’
A Department of Health spokeswoman said: ‘It is essential that patients know that they are getting the safest treatment and care possible, which is why having a strong and effective regulator of health and care services is vital.
‘Much of the report’s focus is on the inspection and registration process, and we look forward to the CQC's response under its new leadership.’
