New Essential Standards of Care for Liverpool

From April 2010 new essential standards of quality and safety are being introduced gradually across all health and adult social care services in England. The Care Quality Commission (CQC), the new independent regulator of health and adult social care, will license services if they meet essential standards and constantly monitor them to make sure they are compliant with new legislation about to be passed in parliament. NHS trusts are the first to come into the new system starting 1 April this year; they will be followed in October by all providers of social care for people over 18 years of age and by providers of independent healthcare. Over the coming two years the system will include all primary care and dentists too.

The new system means that you can expect your care and treatment to meet essential standards of quality and safety that respect your dignity and rights. The biggest change from any earlier system of regulation is that each of the standards is based on an actual outcome for people rather than a policy or a target. Providers must demonstrate that people in their care have a quality experience across all aspects of their treatment, care or support.

CQC is publishing information about the status of all NHS trusts registered with them from April on its website at www.cqc.org.uk. Here you will be able to look up the activities provided by your local NHS hospital. In the course of 2010 CQC will be enhancing the level of detail it publishes on its register of providers, displaying information on how providers are meeting the essential standards of quality and safety and making this data much more transparent and accessible to patients, their carers and families. For the first time information will be updated directly judgements are made by CQC’s assessors and inspectors and CQC will monitor the status of providers continuously, noting improvements as they happen and taking swift action where providers are failing people.

CQC is putting people who use health and social care services at the centre of their work and wants them to have a bigger say in how services should improve. Your voice will count in helping CQC decide what action to take and to make judgements about providers. The regulator is interested in feedback from patients, their carers and families alike and in hearing about instances of both good and poor care. They are developing ways for you to feedback to them directly but meanwhile recommend that you contact a local representative group such as your nearest Local Involvement Network who will pass your comments to them.

You can find out more about the new essential standards of quality and safety at www.cqc.org.uk or contact the Care Quality Commission on 03000 616161.