#CAAW blog: Diary of an audit lead day 2 – a challenge to national clinical audit providers

Published: 10 Nov 2015

In the second of his Clinical Audit Awareness Week blogs, Michael Spry (Countess of Chester Hospital FT audit lead, Mersey Clinical Audit Network chair and NQICAN member) gives his views on national clinical audit impact 

Diary of an audit lead day 2: Tuesday 10 November 2015

I cast my eye over the national audits this morning – a lovely activity for a blustery Tuesday morning.

The emphasis is on ‘eye’ singular here, as one eye always remains welded shut through fear when I do this task. It’s the fear that a report will have crept out unnoticed and somehow we’ve missed it.

I must say for me, the national audits make me nervous. These are issues often discussed between clinical audit colleagues and HQIP, but we really need the national audits to provide timely and easily interpreted and benchmarked reports.

We need the volume of reports to be manageable, for clinical audit staff and for the clinicians involved. We need recommendations to be clearly flagged. We need the tools – the software etc – to be compatible and easily accessible.

We need, we need, we need… I often remind my clinicians an action plan is not like a wish list to Father Christmas, but something that can be realistically achieved. Am I waltzing off into the realms of wonderland here, or can we achieve an easily navigable and manageable national audit programme?

I realise I’m verging on the grumpy old man now, so will take myself off to a darkened room. Happy Tuesday everyone!

Michael