ABSTRACT
All clinicians are expected to participate fully in audit programmes, including specialty and subspecialty national external audit programmes endorsed by the Commission for Health Improvement. Clinical Governance places a duty of responsibility on all healthcare professionals to ensure that care is satisfactory, consistent and responsive. It emphasises that each individual is responsible for the quality of their clinical practice as part of professional selfregulation. It will strengthen the current systems of quality assurance based on evaluation of clinical standards, better utilisation of evidence-based practice and learning the lessons from poor performance (see Figure 1.5, which outlines the continuous process for monitoring best practice and delineates the areas where clinical governance has an essential monitoring role). The clinical governance framework builds upon professional selfregulation and performance review. It takes account of existing systems of quality control and aims to include all relevant information. It is based upon partnership and driven by performance based on efficiency, effectiveness and excellence.
