Effective auditing in care: Obtaining evidence - part 11 of 13

11.0 OBTAINING EVIDENCEAfter determining the procedure requirements, the auditor should gather objective evidence using the following methods: 1. Interview personnelBased on your audit planning and checklist questions, ask staff questions relating to their responsibilities within the procedure. Listen to what they tell you and see if their explanations match the process defined in the procedure. Use open-ended questions to elicit more complete responses. Do not be afraid to challenge and probe or follow an audit trail to see where it leads you. Talking to people is the best possible way to test their understanding of the requirements of the procedure. 2. Observe operationsAid your own understanding of the process by watching it being performed. See if the observed practices comply with requirements. You will discover the persons being interviewed are more relaxed when you allow them to demonstrate their jobs. In addition, internal audits will be less disruptive since work is actually being completed. 3. Review documents and recordsAsk the staff being interviewed what documents and records are used in their work. The auditor may find documents, records and forms beyond those identified in your audit planning. See if the documents are adequately controlled and available for use. Refer to the documents and records to help you follow the work being shown. Verify the records described in the documents are being properly used. 4. Examine recordsAuditors cannot interview every person, observe every activity, look at every document, and evaluate every record. The auditor should strive for representative samples that allow for informed judgements. Part 12 coming next week. Albert CookManaging DirectorBettal Quality Consultancy Fellow Chartered Quality InstituteThe Cared 4 quality management system contains all the tools you require to carry out effective auditing. We are developed an audit pack to sit alongside these guidance notes which is available from Bettal Quality Consultancy. Please call us on 016977 41411 if you would like more information.