College welcomes 'long overdue' recognition of workforce pressures by CQC

The Royal College of General Practitioners responds to the CQC State of Care report. 

Professor Kamila Hawthorne, Chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: "GPs and the CQC have not always had the easiest of relationships, so we’re pleased to see that the unsustainable pressures general practice is facing are being recognised – and that many thousands more GPs are needed to keep up with the growing need for our care. 

“While this acknowledgement of the hard work that GP practices are doing to provide safe, timely and appropriate care is welcome, it’s long overdue as many of our members tell us about the additional pressures and unnecessary stress that CQC inspections – and preparations for them – have placed on them and their teams. Many report that CQC’s processes are ineffective, and in some cases discriminatory against practices run by GPs from ethnic minorities. 

“Some of our members have reported the most awful experiences of their practice inspections and we have been raising significant concerns with the CQC over a long time.

“We have welcomed the recent Dash review and Professor Sir Mike Richards’ report on how and where the CQC needs to improve, We hope that this will be the start of a much more productive working relationship with the College and individual GP practices, as well as the first step towards creating a more proportionate system of inspection that is fair and fit for purpose - and that practices and patients can trust and have confidence in.”

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.