PRE-INSPECTION AUDIT
Importance of Measuring Your Care Home Against CQC Standards
One of the most stressful aspects of running a social care company is dealing with CQC inspections. Before a CQC visit, if you do not evaluate your care home in the same way as CQC does, how will you know what rating you are going to get on your next CQC inspection? Any breach of CQC regulations may result in a red or amber report, negatively affecting the running of your business. Not auditing your service provision before an actual CQC inspection is not worth the risk. Our team of expert CQC compliance consultants has the up-to-date knowledge and experience to support you and your staff, ensuring your services meet the fundamental standards and eliminating the element of surprise on the actual inspection day.
Is the Pre-inspection Audit a Disruptive Service?
Not at all. We will not be disrupting your service delivery in any way. All your staff can carry on with daily routines. We might interview them during times when they are less busy. The residents’ needs are always treated as a priority.
When Do I Need a Pre-inspection Audit?
Rectifying CQC inspection offenses or enforcement notices.
Preparation for an upcoming inspection (including the Transitional Monitoring Approach).
Starting a new service offering.
Ensuring your practice fit-outs are compliant.
Common Compliance Factors Affecting Providers During Inspections
Good at providing care but poor at evidencing it.
Lack of investment in quality protocols that demonstrate compliance.
Policy in paper and not in practice.
Quality protocols are in place, but data is not used to improve services.
Training, learning, and mentoring are in place but not adequately evidenced (e.g., only face-to-face training is evidenced, sometimes without specific learning outcomes/details relevant to the role).
No clear audit trail linking strategic goals to deliverable actions.
Poor systems in place for the recruitment and retention of staff.
Disproportionate focus on profitability over client outcomes.
Staff team, completely unaware of what KLOEs are and how their day-to-day work is relevant to these.
Our Team of Compliance Experts Carry Out Focused Audits On
Policies and procedures.
Health and safety.
Detailed care plan auditing.
HR paperwork.
Medication management.
COVID-19 infection control precautions, as needed.
Some Benefits of Carrying Out a Pre-inspection Audit
Offer an opportunity to evaluate your service provision against actual standards.
Are measured against the same standards used by CQC, including the ‘The Key Lines of Enquiry’ (KLOEs) and Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive, and Well-led.
Offer detailed feedback provided from a different perspective.
Provide space to take a step back, reflect, and review.
Provide specific action plans for improvements.
Support your team’s growth, knowledge, and confidence.
May highlight actions for specific team members that inspectors may talk to.
May prepare service users as inspectors may also target them.
OUR PROCESS
HSB Pre-inspection Audit Process
We have a simple and easy-to-follow step-by-step process, and our professional consultants will explain and guide you through the process, making it easy for you to follow.
Information Gathering
You complete a detailed questionnaire to help us have a clear understanding of your specific business requirements.
Audit Preparation Checklist
We review the specific needs of the practice and issue a bespoke audit preparation checklist.
On-site/Online Audit
We will undertake a thorough on-site evaluation of the practice as part of the inspection audit. This includes an appraisal of your practice policies, audits, risk assessments, decontamination room compliance, patient safety checks, interview readiness of your team, information governance, and clinical governance protocols, as well as recruitment and induction checks. More recently, we now include within our audit the review of your COVID-19 safe working practices. Please note that the inspection audit can also be performed online via Skype/ZOOM.
Audit Report
After the audit visit, we will develop and issue you with an outcome report which provides a detailed best practice gap analysis of where your practice is demonstrating compliance and best practice recommendations where improvements are required.
BOOK SESSION
Interested in This Consultancy Service?
Book or inquire today to embark on a journey of professional growth. Equip yourself with the tools and knowledge necessary to ensure your business thrives.