Quality Practice Award
Welcome to the QPA home page.
Completing QPA has been proven to be a
powerful tool in improving team working in practices. Practices
that have successfully completed it have found the reflective
learning it generates of benefit to team members in their personal
learning with cross over to revalidation and PREP. The quality of
the care their patients receive is perceived to be higher and the
whole experience provides a deep sense of team and personal
pride.
Below is a summary of the world of
QPA. The current criteria can be found in QPA Essential
Guidance. The menu on the left will provide further
details on the QPA process.
What is QPA?
QPA is a quality assurance process undertaken
by practices, which recognises a high standard of quality patient
care delivered by every member of the practice team.
It was conceived in 1996 by a group of GPs in
NE Scotland who, after undertaking Fellowship by Assessment (FBA),
realised that their achievements would not have been possible
without the support of the practice team. They went on to develop a
scheme based on FBA, with the help of a multi-disciplinary group,
which recognised the commitment of the entire practice team in
providing quality of care for patients and staff.
As of 1st April 2008 there is now also mQPA,
which is available to practices in Scotland. For more information
on this please see the
mQPA page here.
How does it work?
Each practice working on the QPA is required
to submit a portfolio of written evidence set against a number of
criteria covered in six modules. When a practice’s written evidence
is complete, a full day assessment visit is conducted by a panel of
four, which will comprise a combination of GPs, Nurses, Managers
and Lay Assessors.
How long will the process take?
Practices have 18 months from the time of
application to completion of their submission. However,
submitting a Notice of Intent to Apply (NIA) binds the practice to
the version of criteria valid at that time. Failure to submit
within the timescale might result in the practice having to
transfer to the latest
version.
Is there any Support?
The Essential Guidance contains a step-by-step guide
and applicants will also have access to a central
advisory structure. Practices will vary in the amount of
support they require. Your local QPA Office can be contacted for further
information
How long is the award valid for?
The award is valid for 5 years. Practices, who
wish to be re-accredited for QPA without losing their QPA status,
should begin work on the appropriate version of the award in time
to complete and be re-awarded prior to the expiry of the initial
award.
Why do it?
Practices achieving QPA have found that the
process engenders a real sense of team spirit, pride in each
other's areas of work and an improved understanding of working
together towards a better environment for patients and staff. The
criteria is continually modified and developed further to reflect
the ongoing changes in general practice. Practices who undertake
the assessment are therefore actively encouraged to feed into the
development process.
QPA current version.
The criteria are reviewed annually and changes
introduced and released on 1st April. Version 12 applies
from 1st April 2009.
Please use the menu on the left hand side of
this page to navigate to the subjects of your choice.
Overcoming barriers to QPA
Overcoming barriers to
QPA (for PDF - 68kb)
Further information
Please contact the QPA office relevant to your geographic
location.
The
RCGP Quality Practice Award E-bulletin - January
2007 (PDF, 230kb)
Updated April 2009