Quality: assurance or standards?

Public and professional concern for issues of safety and quality in clinical practice has moved the focus of attention from participation in programs of Continuing Medical Education [CME] or Continuing Professional Development [CPD] to measures of competence or performance in practice. The debate about quality has reached an important position: it is no longer a matter of demonstrating involvement in 'Quality Assurance' activities or the definition of 'Standards', but rather one of recognizing the necessity of developing approaches that contribute significantly to the 'Assurance of Quality and Standards'. This report describes an activity designed to progress this topic through discussion and clarification of the key issues that need to be addressed in assessing the performance of practitioners in their clinical settings

Quality: assurance or standards?

Public and professional concern for issues of safety and quality in clinical practice has moved the focus of attention from participation in programs of Continuing Medical Education [CME] or Continuing Professional Development [CPD] to measures of competence or performance in practice. The debate about quality has reached an important position: it is no longer a matter of demonstrating involvement in 'Quality Assurance' activities or the definition of 'Standards', but rather one of recognizing the necessity of developing approaches that contribute significantly to the 'Assurance of Quality and Standards'. This report describes an activity designed to progress this topic through discussion and clarification of the key issues that need to be addressed in assessing the performance of practitioners in their clinical settings

Competence to practise: whose responsibility?

As health practitioners Mound the world face a more knowledgeable patient population and increased public and political pressure to demonstrate that the highest possible quality of patient care and health outcomes is being provided, issues of resources, time and responsibility to meet these challenges are being debated. This report highlights some of these concerns and refers to an international forum that typifies the current focus on these issues and the shift in emphasis that needs to be addressed at several levels within each health system