Welcome to the Clinical Audit Support Centre
Should the name ‘clinical audit’ be changed? Have your say

At the recent NAGCAE roundtable meeting that CASC Director Tracy Ruthven attended in London, there was a discussion on whether the name ‘clinical audit’ should be changed. This discussion has been ongoing in audit circles for many years and was previously debated during national meetings hosted by the Department of Health in 2007. At the NAGCAE meeting in 2012 a number of attendees suggested that the name ‘clinical audit’ should be altered to ‘healthcare quality improvement’. It is important that those with an interest in clinical audit share their on this matter and we have therefore set up a simple poll on our new Clinical Audit Tools website. The poll runs until the end of May and you can register your vote and add comments in relation to this matter via the Discussion Board. Click here to vote.
Book now for CASC's annual audit conference
All of us that work in clinical audit are facing a tricky balancing act. Current demand for audit is at an all time high but resources are scarce. National audit expectations increase on an almost monthly basis and yet we are expected to re-invigorate clinical audit at the same time. Keeping up with recent directives, letters and results of consultations from the likes of Department of Health, NAGCAE and HQIP is a battle. With all this in mind, CASC are delighted to announce details of our national audit conference on 4th July. The vent features keynote speakers from Department of Health, NAGCAE and HQIP, plus updates from the CQC and guidance on revalidation and commissioning. The event also features local audit staff giving important views from the shop floor and there will be a debate on national and local audit. The day also features the Clinical Audit Innovation Awards (click here for an entry form). If you would like to see the full programme for the event, please click here. The event will be held in Leicester and the early-bird rate is just £100 plus VAT and you can request your booking form info@clinicalauditsupport.com
'The State of Clinical Audit' interim report published
CASC's annual 'The State of Clinical Audit' interim report (click here to read more), which provides the views of over 150 respondents, is now available. The report focuses on data collected in December 2011 and follows on from the identical survey conducted in December 2010. The key findings are: the quality of national audits have dropped in the last 12 months (with less than 35% rating NCA's 'excellent or good', only 33% of respondents feel 'more positive' about clinical audit compared to a year previously, 84% of respondents stated that local audits are 'more effective at improving patient care' (up from 78% in 2010), for the second year running the National Stroke Audit was voted the most effective NCA, small improvements were reported in local re-audit rates, but only 10% of respondents reported they have 'more resources available to support clinical audit' compared to December 2010. The findings will be sent to the key national bodies: Department of Health, NAGCAE, HQIP and NAGG and we will publish their comments in the final version of the report (scheduled for July 2012). We have also set up a section on the discussion board where those interested can discuss issues raised by the report. Click here to access the Discussion Board.
CASC's New Online Resource is here!
The Clinical Audit Support Centre would like to let you know that our new online resource is now available. The innovative new website will supplement the CASC website and is aimed at supporting clinical audit professionals and clinicians who are often expected to carry out clinical audit without support. The new website is highly interactive and features a range of tools that will help users determine if their project is an audit and if it is likely to be a success. The website focuses on learning and education and visitors will be able to watch educational podcasts and lectures. The website also features a range of interactive polls, quizzes and blogs. There is also an easy to use discussion board that enables members to discuss key issues and share tips and advice with others. The website is free to use although you will need to take a few moments to register your details. To access the site, please visit www.clinicalaudittools.com or click here.
Junior Doctor Clinical Audit Competition update
After the huge success of CASC's annual 'Junior Doctor Clinical Audit of the Year' competition in 2010 and 2011 we are delighted to announce further details of the 2012 event. Juniors have until the 31st July 2012 to send in their abstracts and finalists will be short-listed by the 10th September. As in previous years the Finals Day will be held in Leicester in November. This year we are offering two competitions: the Martin Ferris Award (for the best audit poster as selected by Martin) and Clinical Audit of the Year (to be selected by a panel of clinical audit experts). Please inform junior doctors and colleagues of the competition and encourage them to take part. Further details of the competition, including the entry form can be found by clicking here.
Sign-up for CASC's first-ever webinar
With much talk in the air at a national-level of establishing innovative and new approaches to clinical audit, the Clinical Audit Support Centre are pleased to announce that we will be running our first-ever clinical audit webinar at 11am on 8th June. A webinar is an online event and this will include a presentation on the findings from our latest 'State of Clinical Audit' report, plus feedback on the first three months of the Clinical Audit Tools website. The webinar will last for no longer than an hour and will also feature interactive polls, feedback, questions, etc. Places are free but limited to just 20 and these will allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. If you would like to register your interest in the webinar, please email info@clinicalauditsupport.com and entitle your email 'CASC webinar'.
CASC Distance Learning course re-vamped
CASC are delighted to announce that we have recently updated materials for our well-established accredited Clinical Audit distance-learning course. The course guidebook has been overhauled and re-formatted. In addition, to help supplement learning, all students on the course can access clinical audit lectures via our new Clinical Audit Tools website. We have also been working with our accrediting body to review the learning outcomes and content of the course to ensure this follows best practice from an educational perspective. The course involves students undertaking a local audit with expert tutor support and is perfect for clinicians who want to conduct a clinical audit of their practice for revalidation purposes. To find out more about the course, please email info@clinicalauditsupport.com
Book now for the accredited SEA Masterclass
The Clinical Audit Support Centre would like to let you know that our accredited Significant Event Audit Masterclass will be held in Leicester on 26th June. SEA is now an integral part of revalidation arrangements for doctors and the course covers all you need to know in relation to setting up significant event audit in your organisation. In addition, CASC's accredited Root Cause Analysis course is scheduled to take place on 27th June. Both risk management techniques are excellent for ensuring better patient safety and are advocated by the NPSA. We will also offer a 10% discount to those who book onto both courses. For more information, please contact the CASC Office.
Issue 78 of audit jobs bulletin now available
The Clinical Audit Support Centre launched their Clinical Audit Jobs Bulletin in June 2009. Every two weeks we search through all of the clinical audit-related jobs advertised on the NHS jobs website and produce a relevant document that will enable audit professionals to see what jobs are currently available. We list the main descriptors for each role, e.g. employing organisation, job title, salary, location and closing date. We have also noted the job reference number that will allow you to find further details of jobs that you want more information on without spending lots of time searching the entire NHS jobsite database. To download the Jobs Bulletin, click here.
Request your CASC information pack
CASC have developed a series of promotional materials that provides you with more details of the work that we support. The wallet of information includes a set of inserts: Introducing CASC, training and accreditation, support and consultancy, sharing best practice, event management and CASC case studies. The materials provide a great overview of how we work with healthcare professionals to improve the care that they deliver and there are a number of excellent case studies that show how our work has enabled organisations and teams to collaborate with us on ventures that have improved care, assured best practice and led saved money. If you would like to receive your copy, please email your name and full postal address to info@clinicalauditsupport.com
Register for the CASC E-News!
Since we launched our E Newsletter in February 2007 over 1,000 healthcare professionals have signed up! The E News is free and delivered direct to your email account every two months. The newsletter provides you with a mix of CASC-related and other clinical audit news to help you keep up to date with what is happening in the world of clinical audit. If you have missed a previous issue of E News please visit the community section of our website where all previous issues are archived. Follow this link to sign up for your copy.