GROUP PRACTICE REVIEW

Quality in Practice

Group Practice Review (GPR)

The GPR is a collaborative process that involves a clinic visit and follow-up meeting with a trained CPSA Physician Facilitator. The GPR is designed to:

  • identify group practice quality indicators and share best practices with other clinics and physicians,
  • support the implementation of the CPSA Standards of Practice in group practice (Standards of Practice Implementation review, or SOPI),
  • share group data, such as aggregate prescribing information, to support quality improvement, and
  • strengthen group practice by providing concrete and constructive feedback and resources tailored to GPR results.

A CPSA Physician Facilitator meets with clinic physicians and staff to discuss findings, share best practices from other group practices, identify opportunities for quality improvement and offer resources tailored to the GPR results. The Facilitator delivers facilitation to the group using the R2C2 model.

Member participation in Continuing Competence programs is confidential under sections 52 and 53 of the Health Professions Act.

Physicians told us they wanted a group assessment tool and now we have one. Phong Van, Program Manager

The SOPI Review

The CPSA Standards of Practice are the minimum standards of professional behaviour for Alberta physicians. The Standards of Practice Implementation (SOPI) Review assesses how well the clinic is meeting the standards, identifies challenges and provides an opportunity for the clinic to work with the CPSA Physician Facilitator, using the R2C2 facilitation model, to find solutions. See Tools, below, for detailed information on the SOPI Review.

Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Credits

Has your clinic been selected for a GPR?

Learn what to expect.

Group Practice Review (GPR) recognizes workflows and processes in multi-practitioner clinics are necessarily different from solo practice.

PARTICIPANT SELECTION

  • 50 Family Physician/General Practitioner clinics will be randomly selected in 2017, with Specialist clinics participating in 2018. The data and feedback gathered will be used to further refine GPR processes, tools and resources.
  • In future, Practice Checkup data may be used in the selection process.

RESEARCH & PROGRAM BACKGROUND

More on Research & Evaluation

The Health Professions Act (HPA) mandates the College of Physicians & Surgeons of Alberta (CPSA) to regularly
review physician practice as part of the CPSA’s Continuing Competence Program. Previously, the main tool for the
task was the Physician Achievement Review (PAR) program. Recent feedback indicates that a different
process may be of more value and relevance to members.

In response, CPSA Council called for a pilot project to examine the tools and approach to improve the value of
feedback for all members with an element of group practice review and support.

Focusing on promoting excellence and adhering to the Competence Committee’s Design Principles, the primary
aim of this pilot project and subsequent program redesign is not to weed out those physicians who are not
meeting general competencies and the CPSA Standards of Practice; but rather to provide meaningful feedback that will
inspire physicians to reflect and embrace new ideas and resources to help meet the standards of practice and
provide excellent medical practice to their patients.

Data for GPR design was collected through surveys of physician members, focus groups of physician members and stakeholder consultations.

Read the report

Results:

Details:

A limited implementation in fall 2016 provided the opportunity to gather feedback to refine the GPR process, tools and resources:

  • 8 Family Medicine/General Practitioner group practices were invited to take part
  • Each group practice participated in an onsite Standard of Practice Implementation (SOPI) review and follow-up meeting with a CPSA Physician Facilitator to discuss the results of the review, group practice quality indicators, resources and group data.
  • Group quality indicators identified through consultation, such as participation in quality improvement initiatives and patient surveys, were incorporated throughout the different elements of the group review. Samples of formal contract/agreements, team agreement and norms were developed to help support clinics.
  • Challenges with certain aspects of the standards of practice were also identified, and support was provided to help clinics have Information Sharing Agreements and Privacy Impact Assessments in place.
  • This limited implementation produced constructive research findings but the sample size of only eight group practices was limited.

YOUR CLINIC HAS BEEN SELECTED FOR A GPR

What to expect

The GPR looks for outstanding processes and methods as well as improvement opportunities, to benefit your clinic and group of practising physicians. This may include how your team interacts with one another, and whether your clinic is involved in partnership or quality initiatives. We will also share best practices with you from your peers in Alberta.

We make sure the process is easy and you’ll find value in participating. Here’s what to expect:

  • Pre-visit Questionaire

    First you’ll receive an introductory letter and pre-visit questionnaire (see Tools, below). The questionnaire will request contact information for a physician lead and clinic/office manager, as well as basic information to help us better understand your clinic (e.g., number of physicians, years in operation, electronic or paper patient records, services offered and so on).

  • Practice visit

    College staff will contact your clinic to schedule a 2½-3 hour on-site visit. The visit will include a CPSA Standard of Practice Implementation (SOPI) review (see Tools, below) and assessment of other quality indicators through:

    • general clinic and exam room inspection
    • patient chart review
    • interview with the clinic/office manager
    • interview with the physician lead
    • review and wrap-up

  • Facilitated follow-up

    A CPSA Physician Facilitator will bring the results of the GPR back to your clinic for a 90-minute discussion with all of the clinic’s physicians. The results of the SOPI review and other quality indicators will be shared, along with aggregate data (e.g., prescribing) for further learning and reflection. The Facilitator delivers facilitation to the group using the R2C2 model.

  • Resources and support

    The facilitator will offer resources and support tailored to your clinic’s GPR results.

  • CPD credits

    • All general practitioner and family physician participants are eligible for 13.5 Mainpro+ credits through the College of Family Physicians of Canada
    • All specialists will be eligible for Maintenance of Certification credits through the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada

Resources

Click Here to go to the resource page.

FAQ

Is participation mandatory?

Yes, regulated members are mandated by the Health Professions Act to complete a quality improvement initiative at least every five years. This includes the Practice Checkup for all physicians, and Individual Practice Review (IPR) and Group Practice Review (GPR) for selected or referred physicians. Rules for Member Participation

You will be referred to the College’s Deputy Registrar to discuss alternatives.

Member participation in Continuing Competence programs is confidential under sections 52 and 53 of the Health Professions Act.

WE CAN HELP

Group Practice Review

Phone: 780-392-3101 or 1-800-561-3899 Ext. 3101  | Email: CC.inquiries@cpsa.ab.ca