Society offers guidance on spotting and remedying poor performance
Guidance on setting up schemes to identify and remedy poor performance by pharmacists is now available from the Royal Pharmaceutical Society.
The interim guidance outlines the principles that should be applied in
identifying and remedying poor performance at the local level. It clarifies
steps to be taken by those concerned and the most appropriate agency
for referral to ensure safe and effective delivery of pharmacy services
in the interests of patient safety in a coherent and consistent way.
“Identifying and remedying pharmacist poor performance in England
and Wales” is available from the clinical
governance section of the
Society’s website.
The guidance is expected to be of interest to pharmaceutical advisers
in primary care organisations, to local pharmaceutical committees, to
Community Pharmacy Wales, to managers of pharmacists in hospitals and
in pharmacy chains and to locum agencies setting up systems for pharmacists
on their lists.
The guidance is interim in nature because it will need to be reviewed
in the light of any changes proposed by the Government in its response
to the recommendations of the Shipman Inquiry fifth report, “Safeguarding
patients: lessons from the past — proposals for the future”.
The Society chose not to wait for the Government’s response — which
may take some time — because it is keen to ensure that local poor
performance schemes operate in an effective, consistent manner and help
promote the safe effective delivery of pharmacy services for patients
and the public.
The Society’s Director of Practice and Quality Improvement, David
Pruce, said: “The Society is aware that many organisations are
setting up poor performance schemes as part of their clinical governance
arrangements. The guidance is intended to assist organisations to recognise
poor performance and outlines the principles that employers, including
the managed care sector (NHS), should apply in identifying and remedying
poor performance.”
The Society is seeking comments from pharmacists and others on how the
guidance could be improved and any practical problems that can be identified.
Comments should be sent by post to the Director of Practice and Quality
Improvement, Royal Pharmaceutical Society, 1 Lambeth High Street, London
SE1 7JN or e-mailed to qualityimprovement@rpsgb.org |
The
Pharmaceutical Journal