13 Nov 2001 Clinical Governance Network conference For more details, please see the RCGP courses and conferences events pages here . Membership of a local group is compulsory, and the process of clinical governance will be an obligation that will, eventually, be monitored by the Commission for Health Improvement. Despite this unpromising start, we believe that clinical governance can be a positive method of enhancing patient care, professional development and primary care itself.
Clinical governance is a framework for ensuring the delivery of high quality care.
For most primary care staff the ultimate responsibility lies with the Chief Executive of the health authority or board until the local group becomes a Trust. Community nurses' clinical governance will be overseen by the Chief Executive of their community trust. The leader for clinical governance has the responsibility for making the framework effective. While the detailed structures are different in Northern Ireland and Scotland, the clinical governance agenda will be similar. Initially leaders for clinical governance will concentrate their energies on general practitioners, practice nurses and other employees of their practices.