NHS England and the Care Quality Commission commit to a common purpose to improve outcomes for patients
NHS England and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) are committed to working together to deliver the statutory duty set out in the Health and Social Care Act 2012 to co-operate and to deliver their common purpose, which is to improve outcomes for patients.
The Partnership Agreement (EXTERNAL PDF LINK) aims to foster a culture in which there is support, challenge, engagement, openness and co-ordination at all levels.
The agreement formalises existing close working between the CQC and NHS England, embedding a shared commitment to work together to achieve three priorities that will facilitate improved outcomes for patients.
NHS England and CQC:
- Agree an information exchange protocol to share information and intelligence about the quality of care to spot potential problems early and manage risk
- Implement the mechanisms proposed by the National Quality Board (NQB) in their document ‘Quality in the new Health System: Maintaining and Improving Quality from April 2013 (January 2013)’, on how the healthcare system should prevent, identify and respond to serious failures in quality.
- Set the tone for ways of working nationally, locally and in the wider landscape of our organisations and strategic partners in healthcare.
- The agreement between NHS England and CQC cements joint working at national level and sets out the values and behaviours we want to demonstrate through effective joint working.
Information on the CQC website on the Partnership Working Agreement