16.03.20
CQC to stop routine inspections to support coronavirus care delivery
From March 16, 2020, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has announced it will be stopping routine inspections and instead focusing on supporting providers to deliver safe care during the coronavirus outbreak.
Throughout the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, the CQC’s primary objective is reportedly set to be supporting providers to keep people safe during a period of unprecedented pressures on the health and care system.
As such, routine inspections have been seen as an unnecessary hindrance, with inspection powers only being utilised in a very small number of cases where there exists clear evidence of harm.
Ian Trenholm, Chief Executive of CQC, said: “During this period, our priority will be to support those who deliver health and social care to keep people safe during this global health emergency.
“We will therefore be stopping routine inspections from today. It may still be necessary to use our inspection powers in a very small number of cases when there is clear evidence of harm, such as allegations of abuse.
"In adult social care, our inspectors will also be acting as a support for registered managers, providing advice and guidance throughout this period in the absence of a single national body equivalent to NHS England.
“We are talking to social care providers about how to most effectively collect information from them to ensure that the Government has a clear picture of the impact that COVID-19 is having on the sector."
The CQC is also offering the system support by returning clinically qualified CQC special advisors to the frontline to help with the wider national response, secondments of staff to DHSC, Public Health England and NHS England to support the under-pressure health organisations. The CQC customer contact centre also expects to start taking non-clinical Covid-19 calls from next week, in support of NHS 111.