Effects of the CQC ratings system on provider performance v1.0
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Provider ratings: the effects of the Care Quality Commission's new inspection and rating system on provider performance
IRAS ID
197607
Contact name
Kieran Walshe
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Manchester
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
AMBS/15/03, AMBS reference number
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 11 months, 31 days
Research summary
In response to the Francis report and other concerns, the Department of Health and the Care Quality Commission introduced changes designed to prevent, detect and deal with problems with the quality of care more quickly and effectively. CQC has overhauled its regulatory model and inspection regime to make it more detailed. It has introduced provider performance ratings in five domains (safe, effective, responsive, caring and well-led) using a four point scale (outstanding, good, requires improvement, or inadequate). These ratings are published alongside a narrative report following each inspection.
Our research sets out to examine how providers, the public and other stakeholders respond to provider ratings, and what impacts inspection and ratings have on the quality of care and on improving performance. Understanding how ratings work, as part of the wider inspection process, is essential if we are to increase the potential benefits for the quality of healthcare, and reduce the costs and any adverse or unintended consequences.
We have four main questions in our research:
How is the system of ratings meant to work, and bring about
improvements in the quality of care?How does it work in practice, and what do providers, the public
and others do in response to ratings?What impact does the system of ratings have on measures of the
quality of care and provider performance?How could the system of ratings be improved?
We plan to use a combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods, and to make good use of the large amounts of data which CQC collects about inspections and ratings. Six geographic systems of care will be selected as case studies to examine the process and response to ratings through interviews, meeting observations and document review. Our findings will be shared with CQC and the Department of Health, as well as with health and social care providers themselves, to help improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the system of provider ratings.
REC name
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REC reference
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