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<p>Healthcare providers are expected to implement all the actions contained in a patient
safety alert that are relevant to them and ensure that all relevant parts of their
organisation and staff are aware of the information and/or the required changes. Providers
should be scrutinising the implementation of their alerts and satisfying themselves
that the alerts are complete by the designated deadline.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>NHS
England publishes monthly data about any trusts who have failed to declare compliance
with stage one, two, or three of the National Patient Safety Alerting System’s (NaPSAS)
alerts by their set due date. Provider compliance should also be an integral part
of the commissioners’ responsibilities for improving quality.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
</p><p>As part of its inspections, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) looks at how
providers respond to patient safety alerts as evidence of how effectively they manage
and address safety concerns, and how they use this as learning to improve their safety
systems and processes. CQC is continuing to develop and embed its approach to the
use of data and intelligence across all the sectors it regulates as an integral part
of its new approach to inspections, and has given greater prominence to safety alerts
in its revised surveillance model. CQC’s Intelligent Monitoring system for the Acute
Sector includes a composite indicator around completion of safety alerts and CQC is
currently considering whether this can be implemented for the other sectors it regulates.
This contributes to providers’ overall risk scores, which inform both the scheduling
and prioritisation of inspections and the identification of focus areas for inspections.</p><p>
</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Monitor is responsible for ensuring NHS foundation trusts are
well-led so that they can provide quality care on a sustainable basis and would expect
to be alerted by their providers of anything that might have a bearing on compliance
with their licence including where there are significant issues regarding compliance
with patient safety alerts. The NHS Trust Development Authority (TDA), as part of
its oversight and escalation process, uses quality surveillance monitoring which it
reviews on a monthly basis and which it uses to hold trusts to account for the timely
compliance with alerts. This is undertaken via the TDA’s regular integrated delivery
meetings with the trusts.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The Government has agreed
to consider with relevant organisations the options for transferring NHS England’s
responsibilities for safety to a single national body and this will include responsibility
for patent safety alerts. No decision has yet been taken about the specific functions
to be transferred and until such time, NHS England will continue to be responsible
for these functions.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
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