Archived News

2011

RQIA's Independent Review of Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) in Northern Ireland (Updated 23 February 2011)

RQIA Publishes Clinical and Social Care Governance Review of the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service Trust (Updated 2 February 2011)

Pre-Consultation - RQIA Corporate Strategy 2012-15 and Three-Year Review Programme 2012-15

The Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA) has recently launched a pre-consultation exercise into the development of our Corporate Strategy 2012-15 and Three-Year Review Programme 2012-15. To access further information and provide input into the formulation of either of these documents please click here.

RQIA Annual Provider Workshops - February 2011

During February 2011 RQIA held a series of full day service specific information sessions for providers of nursing homes, residential care homes, domiciliary care and day care settings. These events included essential information on RQIA's new inspection approach, and aimed to support providers and managers in their preparation for the inspection year ahead.

2010

Advice for Providers with Limited or No Water Supply (Updated 31 December 2010)

A number of guidance notes from the Public Health Agency for health and social care providers experiencing limited or no water supply are available below. Further information is also available from the Public Health Agency website.

RQIA Publishes Evaluation of the Management of Medicines in Domiciliary Care Agencies (23 December 2010)

RQIA has just published an evaluation of arrangements in place for the management of medicines for people receiving domiciliary care in their own homes. This examined medicines management in domiciliary care. It identifies targeted approaches to facilitate quality improvement in this setting and highlights the challenges faced by those providing this service throughout Northern Ireland. You can read the full report here.

RQIA Publishes Review of IV Sedation in General Dental Practice (17 December 2010)

In 2009, as part of its planned programme of reviews, RQIA undertook a review of intravenous sedation use in general dental practice which identified areas for improvement in a number of practices. As a result, RQIA was asked by DHSSPS to carry out a further follow-up review. This review focused on safe practice, and makes a number of recommendations aimed at assisting practices to improve patient safety. The review report is available here.

RQIA Consults on Equality Scheme and Action Plan (17 December 2010)

RQIA has opened consultation on its Equality Scheme and Action Plan. If you wish to comment on the consultation documents, please send your comments to the Equality Unit at the Business Services Organisation by 18 March 2011. You can access the full consultation documents here.

Winter Flu 2010/11

Important information on Swine Flu can be found on this site. You can access the latest information including links to useful documents and websites by clicking here.

You can also access this information page by selecting Winter Flu 2010/11 on the quick links on the left hand side of this screen.

Medical Device/Equipment Alerts

From 1 April 2010 new arrangements are being put in place for service providers to eliminate risks to patients and service users from equipment including medical devices. You can access more information here.

Vetting and Barring Scheme

From October 12 2009, increased safeguards have been introduced under the Vetting and Barring Scheme. The Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups (Northern Ireland) Order 2007 has established new safeguarding arrangements aimed at strengthening protection for children and vulnerable adults in workplace situations. For more information visit here.

Functions of Mental Health Commission transfer to RQIA

On 1 April 2009 the functions of the former Mental Health Commission transferred to RQIA under changes to health and social care structures in Northern Ireland. RQIA is now responsible for the delivery of a new range of duties - monitoring the care and services for people with mental ill health or a learning disability.

RQIA Publishes Review Report on Medical Revalidation (14 December 2010)

RQIA has published its independent assessment of the readiness of health and social care trusts for the introduction of revalidation for secondary care doctors from 2012. RQIA found that trusts have implemented robust systems of governance and are strongly committed to having effective systems of appraisal to support revalidation. Whilst the number of doctors taking part in annual appraisal has increased significantly since a previous RQIA review in 2008, RQIA has identified the need to standardise the provision of information to doctors to support appraisal. RQIA makes seven regional recommendations to enhance preparedness for revalidation in Northern Ireland. Next year RQIA is reviewing the readiness for revalidation in primary care. An overview report and five trust-specific reports are available here.

RQIA Publishes Final Reports of Review of Child Protection Services (9 December 2010)

RQIA has published its report of stages 4 and 5 of its review of child protection services in Northern Ireland, carried out by an independent team of child protection experts from across the UK. The five stage review which began in September 2008, focused on recommendations from the overview report Our Children and Young People - Our Shared Responsibility published by DHSSPS in January 2007. The reports focus on arrangements for managing staff performance, access to services and interagency communication at the point of referral to child protection services. RQIA has made focused trust-specific recommendations to support improvements in practice, and also a number of regional recommendations. The report also highlights examples of good practice in each trust, which we would encourage all trusts to replicate. The report is available here.

Latest Hospital Infection Prevention/Control and Hygiene Reports Published (1 December 2010)

On 1 December 2010 RQIA published its latest hospital infection prevention/control and hygiene overview reports for acute hospitals, acute psychiatric admission wards and maternity delivery units across Northern Ireland. While these reports highlight significant improvement, RQIA encourages all trusts to continue to sustain this performance. Copies of RQIA's reports are now available here.

RQIA's Independent Review of McDermott Case Published (11 November 2010)

On 30 September 2010, the Minister for Health, Social Services and Public Safety, Michael McGimpsey, MLA, asked RQIA to undertake an independent review of the Western Health and Social Care Trust's actions in relation to James Francis and Owen Roe McDermott. In keeping with the terms_of_reference for the review, RQIA considered the trust's communication with the survivors of Donagh abuse and the provision of services to support them. RQIA also engaged with the survivors to ensure that their views and concerns were taken into account. RQIA's report is now available here.

Review of GP Out-of-Hours Services (3 September 2010)

RQIA's Review of GP Out-of-Hours Services was published on 3 September. The review, carried out by an independent team of health care professionals from Northern Ireland and Scotland, examined arrangements in place to deliver safe and effective treatment for patients. The review makes a series of recommendations, including: the need to clarify the future strategic direction for the service; closer collaboration with other out-of-hours services, including A&E, ambulance, community nursing, social care and mental health crisis services; and measures to make sure that doctors are not working excessive shifts across services. RQIA also worked in partnership with the Patient and Client Council, to ask the public about their experiences of these services. Patients told us that they value this service, but that there should be a single contact telephone number across Northern Ireland for these services.

RQIA Publishes Clinical and Social Care Governance Review of the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service Trust (Updated 2 February 2011)

Review of Reducing the Risk of Hyponatraemia when Administering Intravenous Infusions to Children

RQIA has just published its follow-up review report Reducing the Risk of Hyponatraemia when Administering Intravenous Infusions to Children. The review team has made eight recommendations and these have been accepted by the Health Minister. It is encouraging to note that the review team found that HSC trusts and independent health care facilities have good operational control of the administration of intravenous fluids to children in compliance with the National Patient Safety Agency's Safety Alert no.22: Reducing the Risk of Hyponatraemia when Administering Intravenous Fluids to children has been substantially achieved. The full report can be accessed

Information for Individuals seeking Registration with RQIA

From June 2010, in light of revised arrangements for the Vetting and Barring Scheme, anyone wishing to register with RQIA should read this Explanatory Note.

The review team highlights the need for an the development of a maternity strategy for Northern Ireland. The report makes a total of 20 recommendations for the service across Northern Ireland and a further 23 specific recommendations for trusts. Key recommendations include the need to maintain appropriate levels of obstetric, anaesthetic and midwifery cover; for all trusts to audit and review their midwifery staffing levels on an annual basis; and to provide all staff with protected time for mandatory training. Taken together, these provide further direction for improvements in the quality and safety of care for women in labour and during delivery. RQIA's report can be accessed here.