Clinical Governance Flashcards

What is the role of service user feedback in clinical governance?

Answer: Service user and public involvement is a core component, informing service improvements and ensuring care meets patient needs

Patient and public involvement is a fundamental pillar of clinical governance. Service user feedback, whether through surveys, focus groups, complaints, or compliments, provides essential insights that help shape services and improve the patient experience.

What is clinical effectiveness and why is it important in governance?

Answer: It means applying the best available evidence to ensure interventions achieve intended outcomes for service users

Clinical effectiveness means ensuring that the treatments and care provided are based on the best available evidence and achieve the best possible outcomes for service users. It is a core component of clinical governance that drives evidence-based practice.

How does the Duty of Candour relate to clinical governance?

Answer: It requires organisations and professionals to be open and honest with patients when things go wrong, including explaining what happened and apologising

The statutory Duty of Candour requires healthcare providers to be open and transparent with patients when a notifiable safety incident occurs. This includes informing the patient, offering an apology, and providing a full explanation. It is a legal requirement in England.

What is a 'root cause analysis' (RCA) used for in clinical governance?

Answer: To systematically investigate the underlying causes of an adverse event or near-miss to prevent recurrence

Root cause analysis is a structured investigation method used to identify the fundamental underlying causes of adverse events. It looks beyond individual blame to examine systems, processes, and contributory factors, with the goal of implementing changes to prevent similar events.

Which organisation is responsible for setting quality standards that support clinical governance in NHS England?

Answer: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE)

NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) develops evidence-based quality standards, clinical guidelines, and technology appraisals that form a key part of the clinical governance framework. These standards help ensure consistent, high-quality care across the NHS.

What is the significance of 'learning culture' within clinical governance?

Answer: It means creating an environment where staff feel safe to report errors and near-misses, enabling the organisation to learn and improve continuously

A learning culture (also called a 'just culture') is one where staff feel psychologically safe to report incidents, errors, and near-misses without fear of disproportionate blame. This openness is essential for organisational learning and quality improvement within clinical governance.