What CQC actually expects on infection prevention and control
Infection prevention and control sits inside two of the CQC’s key questions. Under Safe, inspectors look for evidence that people are protected from avoidable infection: the right PPE available, used correctly, and disposed of safely. Under Well-led, they look for the governance behind it: someone checking that it happens, spotting where it does not, and closing the gap.
For domiciliary care that is harder than it sounds. Care happens in hundreds of homes, not one building, so there is no store cupboard to walk an inspector around. The evidence has to come from records made at the point of care — which is exactly what a repeatable IPC audit produces.
The four evidence areas in a domiciliary IPC audit
- PPE availability. Gloves in every size, Type IIR masks for routine visits, an FFP3 reserve for suspected or confirmed cases, aprons at the agreed par level, and personal hand rub carried by each worker. Stock levels and delivery records are the proof.
- Correct use. Observed donning and doffing, hand hygiene at the five moments, and PPE matched to the assessed level of contact. This is the area most often marked down, because it needs observation rather than paperwork.
- Waste and storage. Clinical waste segregated and disposed of correctly, PPE stored clean, dry and off the floor, and stock rotated so nothing expires in a boot or hallway cupboard.
- Training and records. IPC training in date for every worker, PPE logged against visits, and — the one providers forget — the corrective actions from the last audit demonstrably closed.
How to score it, and what “good” looks like
Score each check as met or not met and take the percentage; a partial answer hides problems. As a working rule, 90% or above with no overdue actions is inspection ready, 70–89% is nearly ready with gaps to close, and below 70% needs work before you would want to present it. The number matters far less than the trend: an audit that starts at 64% and reaches 93% over three months, with every action closed and dated, tells a better governance story than a single perfect score.
Run the audit monthly, keep every version, and never overwrite an old one. Inspectors ask what changed and when.
Turning findings into evidence
A finding with no owner is not evidence. Every shortfall should become a corrective action with a named person and a due date, and be closed with a note of what was done. That closure is the part inspectors weigh most heavily, because it shows the cycle works: you checked, you found something, you fixed it, you recorded it. In PPE Flo every “not met” answer creates that action automatically, and unclosed actions stay visible on your readiness score until they are done.