GP practice inspections must be ‘safe, fair and proportionate’

Responding to the interim report looking into the operational effectiveness of the CQC published today, Professor Kamila Hawthorne, Chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: 

"To achieve its aim of ensuring patient safety and quality care any inspection process must be fit for purpose, but the RCGP has had significant concerns about the current inspection regime for general practice for some time. There is a considerable strength of feeling amongst our membership that many of the CQC’s processes are ineffective, and in some cases discriminatory against practices run by GPs from ethnic minorities, and we have raised these concerns with the CQC at the highest of levels. This review is welcome, and we are pleased the CQC has accepted the recommendations of its interim report in full - and we will continue to work with the CQC moving forward to ensure any future process of GP practice inspections is safe, fair and proportionate."

Further information

RCGP press office: 0203 188 7659
press@rcgp.org.uk

Notes to editors

The Royal College of General Practitioners is a network of more than 54,000 family doctors working to improve care for patients. We work to encourage and maintain the highest standards of general medical practice and act as the voice of GPs on education, training, research and clinical standards.