GP
Changes to the RCGPs Quality Practice Award
By Ashwin, UK Correspondent
Nov 25, 2004 - 5:48:00 AM

The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) has changed the criteria of two of its quality initiatives to help GP practices move easily from one to the other.

The changes apply to the RCGPs Quality Practice Award (QPA), accredited under the GP contract, and to the Quality Team Development (QTD) tool. The RCGP hopes the changes will encourage practices undertaking QTD to move on to undertake QPA.

QPA will also be offered to PCOs who are already undertaking QTD to offer their high-achieving practices, helping them to maintain their high standards. It is also useful to practices who have not quite achieved the Quality and Outcomes Framework within the GP contract but who are capable of doing so.

Dr Nigel Sparrow, RCGP vice-chair, whose practice has undertaken QTD twice, said: �We anticipate this will be the start of a new era for the RCGP quality programmes and hope to eventually bring them all together to provide a smooth path for improving clinical, developmental and team needs.�

Dr Bill Taylor, RCGP chair of QPA, said: �We hope to see many more practices undertake this very important �gold standard� in quality patient care. With the new contract and QOF, practices have to be able to look at and revise their protocols in a clear, methodical way, and that�s where QPA can really help.�

Plans are also underway to allow individual practices to sign up to QTD too. More information will be available in the New Year.


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