CQC and Safeguarding the Role of the Regulator

1
CQC and Safeguarding the Role of the Regulator
Barbara Young, Chairman, Care Quality Commission
Action on Elder Abuse Annual Conference 23rd
March 2009
2

• Ensuring better care for people

3
What is CQC?

• Users, patients, carers and families at the heart
  of what we do
• Health and social care
• Outcomes
• Independence
• Improvement not the Care Failure Commission

4
The context Improving quality of care
5
Building on existing safeguarding work

• Uneven progress in developing arrangements
• Variable support for people
• Safeguarding for self-funders
• Best areas active leadership
• Good safeguarding correlates with good overall
  performance

6
CQC and safeguarding

• Registration system and safeguarding
• Investigation and enforcement
• Reporting and influencing
• Work with partners

7
Registration system and safeguarding

• Registration regulations will apply across health
  and social care
• Require ongoing compliance not just one-off
  declaration
• System will support rights of people to live a
  life free from abuse including for example
• Arrangements to identify and prevent abuse
• Responding appropriately to allegations
• Use of restraint
• Staff recruitment and vetting

8
Enforcement and Investigation

• Role in multi-agency procedures
• New enforcement powers
• Publishing enforcement action
• Investigation role for wider systemic failings
• Proportionate action remembering that people
  come first

9
Reporting, influencing, working with others

• A perspective across health and social care
• Reporting on assessment and special reviews
• Using knowledge to influence policy
• Working with other regulators and other partners
• Multi-agency work
• Raising the profile of safeguarding

10
Future issues

• Safeguarding and personalisation
• Legislation for safeguarding?
• Safeguarding and the CAA

11
Available on our website

• The CQC Manifesto
• CQC response to the No Secrets consultation
• www.cqc.org.uk

12

• Ensuring better care for people
• Touching 50 million lives