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We have published our annual report on our work to enforce the Ionising Radiation (Medical Exposure) Regulations (IR(ME)R) in England. Although there was less imaging in 2020/21 due to the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, 23 million diagnostic imaging examinations using ionising radiation were carried out by the NHS in England.
The report is based on information collected during our inspection activity alongside notifications. During 2020/21, we received 499 notifications of errors. Although notifications relate to incidents where there is risk of harm, the majority do not result in harm to patients.
The report includes practical actions for IR(ME)R employers to improve compliance with the regulations. It also shares examples of the steps some providers have taken in response to errors to improve quality and safety. We hope this report will support providers to make changes to their services to avoid errors and improve patient safety.
Read the full report on our website.
 In June and July 2021, we carried out a provider collaboration review in seven areas of England to explore how services were working together to support children and young people’s mental health during the pandemic.
The review teams followed the journey of several individuals as they moved through the health and social care system.
We have spoken to young people and their families directly and they have told us their concerns about having to wait longer than normal due to the pandemic, but they also told us how the use of technology has increased their access particularly around crisis care.
Staff at these services told us they were worried about stress and burnout. We found there were many examples of services prioritising staff wellbeing such as providing ‘wobble rooms’, wellbeing clinics and counselling sessions.
In many areas there were also improvements in sharing information between services and with young people and their families – however this was not the case everywhere and siloed or disjointed working was a concern.
Read the full report.
In their new blog, Victoria Watkins, Deputy Chief Inspector lead for children and young people, and Jemima Burnage, Deputy Chief Inspector of mental health, discuss our latest provider collaboration review, which focused on mental health care of children and young people during the COVID-19 pandemic.
 In a new video CQC's Head of Strategy Matt Tait updates on our early thinking around our approach to ICS assessment and Local Authority assurance.
The video covers what we're considering including in these approaches and how we'll be developing our work in this area.
 Better Security, Better Care dispels some of the myths about data protection and the Data Security and Protection Toolkit. For example, 68 per cent of respondents to a recent online quiz think that NHSmail gives care providers access to patient information systems. It doesn’t. NHSmail is a great secure email system for communicating directly with NHS colleagues. But it does not give providers access to shared systems such as proxy access to GP or medication ordering systems.
NHSX and NHS Digital are very clear that they must have reached at least Standards Met on the Data Security and Protection Toolkit in order to access these systems. The reason is care providers need to give assurance that they are practising good data security and that personal information is handled correctly.
Read Data protection and cyber security: myths and facts.
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