Help with Contract Compliance from Quality in Optometry
The Association of British Dispensing Opticians, the Association of Optometrist, the College of Optometrists and the Federation of Ophthalmic and Dispensing Opticians have developed a toolkit, which incorporates guidance on GOS contract compliance and clinical governance for the profession, set against the Department of Health's document 'Standards for Better Health'. It is a comprehensive, web-based guide offering practical help and advice, including links to a host of support documents and websites, to enable practitioners be contract compliant and to establish a firm, clinical governance routine to suit their requirements.
You can access the toolkit via its designated website, Quality in Optometry, http://www.qualityinoptometry.co.uk
Quality in Optometry deals with every aspect of contract compliance; please find supporting documents which relate to the contract compliance checklist covered by QiO at the end of this page.
QiO and Record Keeping
The keeping of full and legible records is not only part of the GOS contract but forms an essential part of good patient care and your legal defence, should something go wrong. The PCT will wish to satisfy itself that the contractor is keeping full and accurate records. One way to provide evidence that this is being done is to show that the contractor is regularly auditing their performers' clinical records. A proforma and guidance for auditing details on a clinical record e.g. symptoms/reason for visit, ocular history, general health, medications, family ocular history, unaided vision/visual acuity, BV, etc, etc, can be found at the end of this page, along with spreadsheets which you may find is an easier way of completing such audits.
Primary Care Commissioning - Contract Compliance Framework 2009
The new contract for General Ophthalmic Services was introduced on 1 August 2008. The NHS Primary Care Commissioning Team (PCC) was approached by PCTs to offer a steer on good practice relating to compliance with the new contracts. As a result, PCC developed a contract compliance framework to support PCTs in monitoring contractors’ compliance with their NHS contract and with relevant legislation. The framework, which you can find in individual sections at the end of this page, consists of:
Additional components may be inserted at a later date. Much of what is in the contract is carried over from the old General Ophthalmic Services Regulations or draws specifics from what were broad discretionary powers. PCC has urged PCTs to be mindful that the 'new' GOS contract is a new way of working for practices as well as PCTs and PCTs should be sensitive to how the contract is working from the contractor’s perspective, while everybody becomes accustomed to the new elements.
