CQC Publish Summary On Consultation Responses

CQC have published a statement on the responses to the consultation on changes to regulations and inspections: 

Overall, there have not been major challenges to the features of our proposed new regulatory model. For example, people have not opposed the idea of introducing ratings and many think that having a description of what good care looks like for each of the services we are looking at is helpful and, in some respects, motivating. Where there have been concerns, these have focused largely on how the new approach is implemented so that it is fair and reflects the diverse, and often very specialist, range of services that we regulate.

We have heard from a lot of health and social care providers, and our own staff, about the need to ensure consistency in the way that we make judgments on which rating to award. Providers and staff feel that the way we described the characteristics of good care need to be clearer and more detailed, as do the key lines of enquiry we will use to judge these.

Providers feel we should take into consideration the particular service they provide and the needs and challenges of the people that they care for. Also, health and social care providers want us to ensure that we judge them consistently and take into consideration factors that are outside of their control. For example, the way their services have been commissioned and the funding available.

Health and social care providers, our staff and members of the public, all feel that the inspection process should be tough but fair. For example, the majority of people we have spoken to feel that services need to be outstanding against more than two of our five key questions if we are really going to rate the service as ‘Outstanding’. This view has come from providers as much as it has from members of the public and our own staff.