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NHS Confederation - CQC commits to cancelling inspections during COVID-19 pandemic
We are pleased to hear that CQC has responded positively to our call for them to suspend planned inspections across health and care services during the coronavirus pandemic so that providers can focus on making preparations to care for patients.
This follows a letter that we sent CQC’s chief executive last week.
This is the right action for CQC to take. We will be engaging with them closely as they develop their temporary inspection methodology during this period to make sure that it does not cause any unnecessary burden.
Niall Dickson, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said:
“Frontline staff will breathe a sigh of relief that CQC has responded to our concerns and will now postpone its inspections where there is no immediate safety concern so that they can gear themselves up to prepare for the huge task ahead in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic. We are also pleased CQC will not require Provider Information Returns when safety critical inspections do need to take place as this preparation can be more burdensome than the visit itself.
“We will work closely with CQC leaders as they develop its temporary methodology for inspecting services remotely. While regulation has an important role to play, the focus now has to be on doing everything we can to help the NHS face the greatest challenge in its history.”
If you have any views about how CQC should carry out its regulatory duties during the pandemic, please do get in touch with our regional teams.
