United Kingdom – Who should you appoint as your CQC Registered Manager?

Most GP and dental practices are required to appoint a Registered Manager to oversee the day-to-day provision of regulated activities. We are often asked whether it is appropriate to appoint a practice manager or other member of staff as the Registered Practice Manager. In this article, Alison Oliver explores some of the issues to consider when selecting a Registered Manager.

Registered Manager Requirements

All medical and dental practices providing regulated services must register with the Care Quality Commission (CQC). If practices operate through a corporate body (such as a limited company) or a partnership, or if the provider is an individual who is not responsible for the day-to-day running of the practice’s regulated services, they must appoint a registered manager.

Where the service provider is an individual who has day-to-day control of the service, that individual does not need to appoint a separate registered manager, provided that that individual is responsible for managing the service.

Role of Registered Manager

Registered managers are legally responsible for ensuring that a practice complies with the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 (CQC regulations). The registered manager is usually the main point of contact for the CQC in the practice. They legally share responsibility with the provider for ensuring that the practice complies with the CQC regulations.

Registered Manager Requirements

Under CQC regulations, registered managers must:

• Be a good person;

• Have the necessary qualifications, competences, skills and experience in the management of regulated activities; and

• Be able (due to your health condition) to cope with this activity.

Applicants must be able to provide documentary evidence required by CQC to confirm that they meet the requirements, e.g. employment history and satisfactory safeguarding checks.

When something goes wrong

The CQC has extensive powers to hold both registered providers and managers to account. These include criminal powers such as warnings, penalty notices and prosecutions. Although relatively rare, the CQC has been known to take enforcement action against registered managers themselves. For example, a former registered care home manager was recently ordered to pay fines and costs of over £21,000 after failing to provide safe care and treatment, which resulted in a patient being exposed to a significant risk of avoidable harm (a former care home provider in Chelveston and a former registered manager were ordered to pay £66,963 after failing to provide safe care and treatment – ​​Care Quality Commission). In this case, the former care provider was also fined.

Failure to meet CQC standards may also affect a practice’s registration rating and ultimately lead to it being cancelled.

How to Choose Your Registered Manager

The position of Registered Manager is a position of responsibility. When selecting your Registered Manager, you should consider:

• Is the person suitably qualified and competent to manage the regulated activities of the practice? Although they do not necessarily need to have a clinical qualification, they must have sufficient specialist knowledge and experience of running a GP or dental practice to be able to ensure that the services are run safely.

• Do they have sufficient supervision of the service? The role of the registered manager is to ensure the safe day-to-day running of the service. While this does not mean being on site all day, every day, the person must have a detailed knowledge and understanding of the practice and be able to identify and resolve issues.

• Are they willing to take on the responsibilities of a registered manager? Because the responsibilities of a registered manager are onerous and the manager can be personally liable if something goes wrong, not all employees will want to take on this responsibility.

Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that appointing a registered manager is just a ‘ticking box’ exercise. In the case of a small GP or dental practice, it is likely that one of the directors will be best placed to fulfil the duties of a registered manager. In the case of larger practices with multiple locations, you may need multiple registered managers.

How can we help?

Our team of specialists have an in-depth understanding of the legal framework governing the primary care sector, as well as the wider healthcare system. We provide pragmatic advice to help you respond to the pressures and navigate the legal issues you may face.

We provide assistance in:

• Corporate and Commercial Affairs

• Employment and HR support

• Clinical Negligence Claims

For further information please contact:

Alison Oliver, partner, Hill Dickinson

[email protected]