Overhauling CQC ratings ‘could bring greater clarity’, ministers told

Changes to the Care Quality Commission’s one-word ratings “could be beneficial”, Penny Dash has concluded in the final version of her review.

Much of its contents, which is highly critical of the CQC, had already been published in an interim version in July, which prompted health secretary Wes Streeting to declare the regulator “not fit for purpose”.

But the final version of the review, which includes seven recommendations, addresses some areas not covered in the scathing interim report, including on the much-debated issue of the CQC’s single-word ratings.

It notes “the government recently announced that Ofsted would end the use of one-word ratings and so it would be reasonable to similarly consider their use in health and social care

The review adds: ”Changes to one-word ratings could be beneficial in allowing greater clarity to be brought to the different key questions of quality, allowing a ‘balanced scorecard’ approach across [the key CQC inspection domains] ‘safe’, ‘effective’, ‘responsive’/’caring’ and ‘well led’.

However, “all this needs to be set against the need for a straightforward narrative that is accessible for users and patients”.

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Source: HSJ, 15 October 2024

Read Patient Safety Learning's response to the review:

• Patient Safety Learning welcomes a new review of patient safety across the health and care landscape