UK National Clinical Assessment Authority starts work

Citation

(2001), "UK National Clinical Assessment Authority starts work", International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance, Vol. 14 No. 7. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijhcqa.2001.06214gab.004

UK National Clinical Assessment Authority starts work

UK National Clinical Assessment Authority starts work

The National Clinical Assessment Authority (NCAA) is a special health authority set up as one of the central elements of the NHS's work on quality. It began work in April at its new headquarters in Vauxhall, London. The Authority's aim is to provide a support service to health authorities and hospital and community trusts which are faced with concerns over the performance of an individual doctor. It will deal with concerns about doctors in difficulty by providing advice, taking referrals and carrying out targeted assessments where necessary. Detailed guidance on the role of the Authority will be published in the autumn. This will include advice on how, and under what circumstances, health authorities and hospital and community trusts will be able to refer a doctor to the NCAA for assessment.

The NCAA will not take over the role of an employer, nor will it function as a regulator. Rather, it will help the employer or health authority by carrying out an objective assessment. Following such an assessment, it will advise the trust or health authority on appropriate courses of action. This way, problems may be more speedily addressed.

The involvement of lay people in the work of the Authority is an important feature of the service. This will help to ensure that the public and the profession have the highest possible confidence in the organisation.

The NCAA covers England, and serves all NHS doctors and those doctors working for the prison service. Dentists are likely to be included in the Authority's remit in the future, although this will not happen at once. Arrangements for Wales are under discussion with the Welsh Assembly.

The NCAA sees it as centrally important that key stakeholders at all levels have involvement in the development of NCAA systems, so that developments take into account their views, and stakeholders have confidence in the operation of the Authority. It has therefore begun a detailed consultation process with a reference group to ensure that the processes and procedures it develops are fair, robust, transparent and effective. When it is operational, the NCAA will provide advice directly to Health Authorities or Trusts on local measures to address concerns, or on the need for referral to NCAA for further assessment.

A key objective for the NCAA will be to ensure consistency of approach in dealing with doctors who have problems. The Authority will provide the framework for a supportive and constructive assessment of an individual doctor's performance, normally in the workplace.

Most referrals will come from health authorities or hospital or community trusts. In exceptional circumstances the referring organisation could be a national body. It will be important that health authorities and hospital and community trusts themselves have in place effective systems for identifying and dealing with doctors in difficulty and that they continue to use these. The NCAA can help where a local organisation has been unable to resolve concerns and wants our support to sort out the problem.

Once the NCAA has completed its assessment of a doctor, it will make practicable recommendations to the referring body to help it resolve problems identified. The Authority's recommendations will be advisory and the creation of the NCAA does not in any way affect the rights and responsibilities of trusts, health authorities and doctors. Also, the NCAA will not replace the complaints mechanisms, which will continue to operate in the normal way. The establishment of the NCAA does not change the arrangements for referrals to the GMC or the threshold at which a referral should be made, although the NCAA may recommend a referral to either the GMC or CHI, if its assessment raises concerns appropriate to them. In exceptional circumstances, the Authority may itself make a direct referral to these bodies. Similarly, these organisations will work closely with the NCAA on issues within its remit.

For further information see the NCAA Web site: www.ncaa.nhs.uk