Last week the care provider I work for received a letter from the Care Quality Commission about the new system of registration. This letter also stated that we needed to contact a company called Teleperformance within the next 5 working days to confirm that the data held about the company was correct.

So, as these things do, the letter landed on my desk and I contacted them. After a long wait to get through I was informed that the letter was a mistake – that it should have not requested providers to call and that we would be receiving a call from them sometime in the next ten days to confirm the details they needed.

Suddenly today another letter is received – exactly the same – contact Teleperformance within the next 5 working days. So it was on the phone again.

This time there was no surprise at the phone call, although the guy on the other would not deal with the confirming the data because I was not a Chief or Senior executive of the company (does this mean the Chief Execs of Four Seasons, Craegmor, Southern Cross etc are going to have to give the details of their individual homes?), which seems strange if all they want to do is confirm company details which I am perfectly able to do.

That aside I queried whether it was okay to call now given that I was told something completely different last week. The guy had no idea what I was talking about, so I explained about the first letter etc and in response I got “oh that means they’ve sent two mail shots out” but the details were correct and a Senior Executive needed to call.

Now it was lucky I made that second call but how many other providers will do so if they were informed the first letter was a mistake?

I’ll be honest and my first instinct was to bin the letter because of the information I had been given.

Smaller companies that are run by owners may simply ignore the second letter because they are busy and because they think it is unnecessary.

Perhaps they CQC need to get something on their website to inform care providers exactly what they need to be doing and to clarify that this second letter is to be responded to.