The importance of research in regulatory development

Anna van der GaagChair Health and Care Professions Council

Improving professional regulation in health and social care:interdisciplinary insights PSA Conference, Windsor, 28 March 2014

Outline

• What are the drivers for change?

• Some examples of the impact of research in regulation

• Looking to the future

The Health and Care Professions Council

• UK wide regulator of 16 health, psychological and social work professions

• Purpose: “to safeguard the health and well-being of persons using or needing the services of registrants” – Article 3(4)

• Work overseen by Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care (PSA)

HCPC Register321,735 registrants from 16 professions (3 February 2014)

0

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

60,000

70,000

80,000

90,000

What are the drivers for change?

Drivers for change

Policy change

practice

political context research

Source: Overseas Development Institute circa 1999

Drivers for change in regulation

Regulatory change

Health and care practice

Political context Research

Evidence based health and social care

A strong imperative to deliver evidence based care

Shouldn’t regulators do the same?

Research methodologies in regulation

Descriptive ++++++++++++++

Longditudinal ++

Qualitative ++++++++

Quantitative +++++++

Mixed methods ++++

Randomisation ?

(Could be applied in a study of the impact of continuing fitness to practise).

Evidence based regulation

HCPC’s strategic objective (2009)

To build the evidence base of regulation

Commissioning

Dissemination

Improvement in our processes

www.hcpc-uk.org/publications/research

Examples of research in regulationMeaning and mechanisms

• Understanding the fitness to practise experience

• Service user involvement in education

• Service user feedback tools

• Student fitness to practise

• Public awareness

• Costs of regulation

Fitness to Practise

Expectations of the fitness to practise complaints process (IPSOS 2010)

Led to

changes in our literature and communications

changes to the process and

influenced our thinking on mediation and its role in regulation

www.hcpc-uk.org/publications/research

Professionalism

• What is perceived as ‘professionalism’?

• Students and educators

• Chiropodists / podiatrists, occupational therapists and paramedics

The nature of competence

“The way competence has evolved is as a measurement. It has been stripped away from the constructs of care, motivation and confidence. In Ontario, pharmacists are measured on one day, a six hour assessment. Does this mean they are competent?

Professor Zubin Austin

HCPC seminar, 5 February 2014.

The future? More transformative research

• Regulators increasingly alert to the contribution of research

• Emphasis must be on better understanding of the meaning and the mechanics of regulation

Selected HCPC Research Reports

Gulland, J (2008) Scoping report on existing research on complaints mechanisms.

HPC (2009) Continuing fitness to practise; towards an evidence based approach to revalidation.

Morrow et al (2009) Professionalism in healthcare professionals.

Ipsos Mori (2010) Expectations of the fitness to practice complaints process.

Irvine et al (2011) Alternative mechanism for resolving disputes: a literature review.

Chisholm et al (2011) Service user feedback tools: an evidence review.

Mitchell, L (2012) Student fitness to practise and registration: a literature review

Moore et al (2013) Exploring views on the Fitness to Practise of health and care professionals

www.hcpc-uk.org/publications/research

Contact details

anna.vandergaag@hcpc-uk.org

@AnnavdG

www.hcpc-uk.org

Find us on www.facebook.com/hcpcuk

Follow us @The_hcpc

Follow us on www.linkedin.com

Sign up for our RSS feeds www.hcpc-uk.org

Sign up to our newsletter newsletter@hcpc-uk.org