3 expert tips to ace RACGP accreditation

Does your practice have an RACGP accreditation assessment coming up? If you feel overwhelmed by the task ahead, you’re not alone. 

Accreditation is more than a regulatory requirement – it’s a chance to reinforce your commitment to quality patient care and operational excellence. 

Let’s look at 3 tips to help you prepare for an assessment.

One of the most challenging aspects of RACGP accreditation is the extensive documentation required to demonstrate compliance with the RACGP Standards. Key areas to focus on include: 

Immunisation status of all staff 

The Standards state that practice team members should be encouraged to obtain vaccinations against diseases outlined in the Australian Immunisation Handbook.  

You must provide documentation of team members’ immunity to vaccine-preventable diseases or their immunisation status, if known and with their consent. 

Verbal confirmation won’t suffice; written documentation is required. This could be a record of vaccinations or a signed declaration for those who decline vaccination.  

Qualifications, registrations and education of clinical staff 

You must provide evidence of your doctors’ qualifications as well as their CPD points for the time period being assessed.  

Remember, your nurses must take CPR training every 12 months as part of their Ahpra registration. Meanwhile, your GPs and non-clinical staff must do so every three years as required by the RACGP. 

Risk management

Accreditation assessors will want to see how your practice manages various types of business risks. To succeed in RACGP accreditation, it’s a good idea to focus on areas such as: 

• Reputational risk: Implementing social media policies to avoid reputational damage or breaches of Ahpra advertising guidelines. 
   
• Financial risk: Ensuring compliance with Medicare billing, payroll and Australian Taxation Office obligations. 
   
• Equipment maintenance: Keeping a detailed history of equipment calibration and maintenance to demonstrate adherence to manufacturer requirements and timeframes. 
   
• Cybersecurity: Protecting against data breaches and viruses by ensuring your IT services provider regularly reviews and updates your digital security processes. It’s also important to ensure your team are educated about cybersecurity. 

RACGP accreditation is a team effort. Involving your entire team early in the process can alleviate your workload while creating a culture of accountability and quality improvement.  

It’s a good idea to nominate which GPs and nurses will be interviewed by the surveyor on assessment day. Let them know what to expect and the processes involved. 

Surveyors might ask your reception staff questions too, but if they’re aware of possible questions, this shouldn’t be an issue. 

Getting your entire team involved in regular accreditation preparation meetings can help them come assessment day.  

One of the most effective ways to help reduce the stress of RACGP compliance is to use software specifically designed to help make the accreditation processes easier. 

PracticeHub is trusted by over 1,000 Australian healthcare practices and designed to help simplify the RACGP accreditation process. It can help you: 

Easily uncover documentary evidence 

All your practice’s critical documents, from risk management procedures to vaccination records and CPD points, can be stored and searchable in one digital hub.  

Get your team involved

PracticeHub helps make it easy to assign tasks and track task progress via instant alerts and a central dashboard. Your team can also access all critical documents, registers, policies and procedures in one place.  

Plus, every time a member of your team logs into PracticeHub they’ll see a countdown graphic that lets them know how many days are left until your RACGP accreditation assessment.  

Stay on top of key requirements

The platform can automatically verify your practitioners’ Ahpra registrations and can provide alerts for important deadlines like equipment maintenance and insurance renewals.

Save time writing policies and procedures

PracticeHub includes over 100 expertly written, customisable policies that align with the RACGP Standards. You can easily share them with your team and track compliance via alerts and a dashboard.

Help ensure compliance with online training

PracticeHub offers 8 e-learning courses that can help ensure your staff comply with key RACGP Standards regarding infection control, privacy and confidentiality, and risk management.

Reduce stress on assessment day

You can grant your surveyor access to PracticeHub so they can easily review your practice’s compliance.

Download our free guide to learn more practical tips to help your practice navigate the complexities of RACGP accreditation. 

In this guide, you’ll discover: 

• 10 key focus areas for RACGP compliance success; 
• Actionable tips to meet key Standards and enhance your practice; and 
• How PracticeHub simplifies RACGP compliance for your team.