Month: March 2014

Think tank Policy Exchange has criticised Ofsted inspections and asked for a radical overhaul of the way inspections are carried out. They claim lesson observations should be ditched entirely and shorter one-day checks be made on schools every two years. The think tank called for a greater focus on struggling schools and higher standards from …

Ofsted Criticised by Think Tank Read More »

Under new Regulations, severely ill patients and those with rare debilitating conditions could be given new medicines years before they are licensed. The idea is to help patients in England with severe illnesses who have no other treatment options. The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) will oversee the Early Access to Medicines scheme …

New Early Access to Medicines Scheme Read More »

A recent House of Lords Committee has found that in the worst case, safeguards are being used to oppress thousands of people lacking capacity to force decisions upon them. The House of Lords committee was set up to investigate how mental health reforms introduced in 2005 are working. The committee said it was so concerned …

Safeguards Detaining People in Care Homes Read More »

The CQC has announced that they will be giving GPs at least two weeks’ notice of their intention to inspect GP services.  The announcement follows the completion of its first round of inspections of GP practices.  GP’s inspected in the first tranche were given 48 hours warning that inspectors were due. Prior to the first …

GPs to receive two weeks’ notice for CQC inspections Read More »

According to Age UK, a ‘catastrophic’ situation is developing in England with many vulnerable elderly people being denied care. An analysis by Age UK found that the proportion of over-65s getting help had fallen by a third since 2005-6. In 2013, less than 900,000 over-65s got help, which equates to one in 10 people in …

Elderly Care Situation ‘Catastrophic’ Says Age UK Read More »

CQC has recently published a report on what influences providers’ behaviour in relation to regulation.  The report focuses on in-depth interviews with senior leaders, exploring how providers respond to, and value, regulation.  The sample of interviewees included individuals from acute and mental health NHS trusts; independent sector providers of mental health services and cosmetic surgery; …

CQC releases results of study on provider behaviour Read More »

Age UK’s The ‘Care in Crisis’ report claims that an ‘unprecedented’ number of older people are being left to fend for themselves as a result of a reduction in social care. The report displays that the proportion of over-65’s getting help had fallen by a third since 2005-6 despite an increasing elderly population.  Despite councils …

Age UK report indicates many vulnerable people are denied care Read More »

CQC has issued two fixed penalty notices on a nursing home in North Yorkshire following failures to notify CQC contrary to the Regulations.  The notifications related to a failure to report the detection of Legionella contrary to Regulation 18 and a failure to notify CQC of the suspension of a manager contrary to Regulation 15.  …

CQC fine care provider £2,500 for failure to comply with the regulations Read More »

Research carried out by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) has concluded that the quality of care in care homes is undermined by a paperwork ‘industry’.  The report highlights that commissioners, regulators and safeguarding agencies duplicate requirements while fear of blame drives managers to prioritise paperwork over care. The research examined the practical impact of paperwork …

Quality of care in care homes damaged by paperwork requirements Read More »