Introducing Corrective Actions
Under Quality Care 2020, you will find new levels of Corrective Actions (formerly known as remedial actions) which have been updated to align with accreditation best-practice and promote Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) within your pharmacy.
Corrective actions are identified during the assessment and issued via the QCPP Customer Portal following the conclusion of the assessment.
As a Conformity Assessment Body accredited by the Joint Accreditation System of Australia and New Zealand (JAS-ANZ), QCPP is required to maintain a robust corrective action model to ensure quality and integrity is upheld across all accredited pharmacies.
The new framework for corrective actions will be in place from October 2020 as part of the Quality Care 2020 program.
What are Corrective Actions?
Corrective Actions identify areas where improvements to a pharmacy’s systems, processes or procedures are required to eliminate causes of non-compliance and avoid possible long term business practice failure.
Corrective Actions identified during the assessment are made available in the Assessment Reports section on the QCPP Customer Portal at the conclusion of the Quality Care 2020 assessment.
All Corrective Actions must be addressed by the pharmacy post-assessment to rectify and eliminate recurring non-conformance to the standards within the specified timeframes.
Accreditation will not be granted until corrective actions have been rectified.
Under the Quality Care 2020 program, Corrective Actions are divided into three categories (outlined below) based on the level of risk they pose to consumers and the pharmacy business.
Quality Care 2020 Corrective Action Framework
Non-conformances
Non-Conformances (NCs) are issued when a major risk is identified during the assessment.
When a NC is issued, pharmacies will be required to complete a Root Cause Analysis in the QCPP Customer Portal within 60 days of the assessment.
No extensions are available for Quality Care 2020 non-conformances.
What is Root Cause Analysis?
A Root Cause Analysis is used to further understand and provide an explanation as to why the non-conformance occurred and identify the actions are required to prevent it from happening in the future.
The Root Cause Analysis must be actioned within 60 days of an assessment on the QCPP Customer Portal.
Remedial Action Required
Remedial Action Required (RAR) is considered a moderate risk action.
A RAR will be issued in the QCPP Customer Portal following an assessment. Pharmacies are required to resolve a RAR by providing evidence within 90 days of the assessment.
Observations
Observations may be positive observations made during a pharmacy’s assessment or areas that a pharmacy may choose to improve on.
There is no set timeframe or requirement to address observations. Observations may provide examples of areas that can be included for the pharmacy CQI Plan.
Corrective Action support
QCPP is developing a range of resources to offer training and support on the new corrective action framework.
Resources include presentations, fact sheets, FAQs and more. Keep an eye on your inbox and the Quality Care 2020 Knowledge Hub for more.
Updated Program Rules and Terms and Conditions
QCPP has recently updated the Program Rules and Terms and Conditions for all pharmacies within the program to align with the Quality Care 2020 program and accommodate the remote assessment model.
If your assessment takes place after Thursday 1 October 2020, you must read, understand and accept the new Rules and Terms and Conditions before you can undertake your assessment.
You will receive an email with more information once your assessment has been scheduled.
Support
If you have any questions, the QCPP Support Team is here to help — please email help@qcpp.com or phone the QCPP Helpline on 1300 363 340 (9am-5pm AEDT).
To stay informed about Quality Care 2020, visit the Quality Care 2020 website.