We also provide information about practice ownership, tips and tricks for greening your practice (making it more sustainable) and we can help you become a teaching practice and educate the next generation of GPs.
The Foundation Standard
The Foundation Standard ensures general practices deliver safe, equitable, and high-quality health care. The College manages The Foundation Standard and supports practices across the motu to make sure they are certified.
Completion of The Foundation Standard is compulsory for general practices in Aotearoa who wish to receive Government funding.
Practices need to complete The Foundation Standard every three years, and when they are certified, can prove that their patients are receiving healthcare which meets legislative, regulatory, and clinical requirements.
The Foundation Standard is the best way for practices to:
- continuously improve the health care they offer people
- work towards equitable health care outcomes for all, including Māori as tangata whenua
- align their mahi with the Ministry of Health’s Health System Indicators
- work together as a team
- improve their clinical processes.
Become a teaching practice
All general practices in Aotearoa can apply to be a teaching practice. Hosting ākonga in a general practice builds a community of doctors, nurses, registrars, and practice staff who teach, listen, and tautoko each other.
See The Foundation Standard indicators
Completion of The Foundation Standard is compulsory for general practices in who wish to receive Government funding. Practices need to provide evidence that they have met the criteria of 15 quality assurance indicators.
Quality Programme resources
See resources for practices completing The Foundation Standard and Cornerstone Modules. Learn how to use SmartSheet, find the new building quality checklist, see a Practice Quality Plan sample template and more.
Cornerstone Modules
After practices have finished The Foundation Standard, they can choose modules from the optional Cornerstone programme. These modules help practices to improve the health care they provide.
The Cornerstone modules are tiered; is intentionally flexible and designed for busy practices. The level of accreditation and modules chosen are entirely up to each practice and their interests. Practices must complete the two core modules, Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) and Equity to become Bronze tier accredited.
After three years, practices will need to complete a refresher course for each module, to maintain their tier status.
The Cornerstone Modules support general practices to:
- improve the health care they offer
- work towards equitable health care outcomes for all, including Māori as tangata whenua
- work together as a tīma
- learn in a flexible way, in subject areas that are suited to their interests and the needs of their patients.