Diane Baylis, MPS Clinical Risk Manager, discusses how protocols enable practice teams to practise the right way.

We asked our columnists for their views on CQC practice inspections.

Try these sample AKT questions provided by Dr Mahibur Rahman from Emedica

Learning how to manage a night shift will protect you and your patients, says Sara Dawson

Dr Thomas I Lemon explores the concept of deep space medicine and healthcare.

Dr Andrew Tresidder explores how to maintain professional detachment in a consultation, drawing on the psychological concepts around the Drama Triangle. He is a GP Patient Safety Lead for Somerset CCG, GP Appraiser, member of the Somerset Clinician Support Service, and member of the European Association of Physician Health. He is a former Somerset LMC rep and Bristol Medical School Academy GP Lead.

Mrs H was a 35-year-old teaching assistant who also had two school-aged children. She was obese with a BMI of 40. In 2006, she had seen Dr G with left knee pain. Dr G recorded that on examination her knee was tender over her medial joint line but was otherwise stable. He initially prescribed diclofenac and advised her to lose weight.

Protecting children is something that we all must play a part in, writes Professor Sir Peter Rubin

Dr Ishani Patel at Network Locum discusses how to mitigate the everyday risks that locum GPs face.

For a busy GP, any tool that can save time and labour is valuable. Charlotte Hudson chats with Dr Darach Ó Ciardha about the launch of GPBuddy.co.uk and its benefits for GPs and patients

Doctors face a number of challenges when prescribing: Sara Dawson explores some risk strategies and looks at a classic case of a drug name mix-up

Dr Dan Cohen, an international medical director based in the US, looks at the biggest challenge to healthcare safety: complacency

Victoria Armitage, from the Royal National Institute of Blind People, shares her experience of general practice as someone with sight loss.

The sooner you call MPS about an ethical or legal dilemma, the sooner the matter can be resolved. Professor Carol Seymour, Dr Tom Mosedale, Dr Richard Brittain and Sara Williams explore how and why Collateral-damage foundation doctors get into troubleCollateral-damage foundation doctors get into trouble

The path of a clinical negligence claim is often long and complex. The eventual outcome is affected by a number of key factors; MPS claims manager and solicitor Antoinette Coltsmann takes an in-depth look at a recent MPS case.

Following a number of practice meetings I had some real corkers to tell from the “field” about dilemmas in discretion and confidentiality.

“On the first day of Christmas my Consultant said to me…” Christmas can be a challenging time for foundation doctors in hospitals. Medicolegal Adviser Dr Clare Redmond advises on how to survive the festive season.

The words CQC and inspection can strike fear into the hearts of practices; what can your practice do to get through this daunting time? Charlotte Hudson investigates.

Cross Hills is a semi-rural practice on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales, located between Keighley and Skipton. Part of the Airedale Wharfedale and Craven Clinical Commissioning Group, it is a training practice with just over 12,000 patients, ten GPs, one Registrar, two advanced nurse practitioners and a full practice nursing team, as well as dedicated admin support staff.

Fred had been my patient for a few years but died in November 2011. Fiona, who is the eldest daughter of Fred, is also my patient and was her father’s main carer. Fred was due to take a holiday over Christmas in 2011, so Fiona wanted to cancel the holiday and make a claim on the holiday insurance policy that Fred took out in December 2009.

In this series Charlotte Hudson explores the key risk areas in general practice

Dr Euan Lawson, portfolio GP in Cumbria, explains how a little bit of apathy goes a long way

All GPs will be expected to provide patients with online access to their medical records by 2015, but not everyone believes it is a good idea. Dr Amir Hannan shares how Haughton Thornley Medical Centre approached online access to records and how their patients responded.

Our members often ask for our advice on writing medical reports; here, Dr Stephanie Bown offers her tips on what makes a good report