The CQC are the Care Quality Commission and they’re the independent regulator for health and social care in England. That means they’re responsible for judging the quality of care within care homes and hospitals. The best way to think of them is as the care version of OFSTED. As you can imagine the CQC reports are really important for care providers!

What does an inspection look at?

The CQC look at 5 key areas when they inspect our homes which answer these questions:

• Are they safe?
  Is your loved one safe and protected when in our home.
• Are they effective?
  Is your loved one’s care, treatment and support achieving good outcomes, helping them to maintain quality of life and is based on the best available evidence.
• Are they caring?
  Does our team involve and treat your loved one with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.
• Are they responsive to people’s needs?
  Is our service organised so that we meet your loved one’s needs
• Are they well-led?
  Does the leadership, management and governance of the organisation make sure it’s providing high-quality care that’s based around your individual needs, that it encourages learning and innovation, and that it promotes an open and fair culture.

What happens after an inspection?

Once the inspections are complete, the CQC publish their findings in a report addressing the 5 questions above. It talks about the good examples they find within our homes and talks about any areas for improvement. They also issue us with a new rating, which must be displayed on all care home’s websites. We keep ours on our care home’s individual pages, you can find your local homes here.

If you’d like to find out more about the CQC, you can head to their website here. To find your local Athena Care Home and their review score, click here.