The Healthcare Practice Quality Act, also known as the 'Quality Act', applies to all healthcare practitioners. This legislation came into effect on 1 July 2022.

The 'Quality Act' establishes various conditions to ensure the quality of care. These conditions encompass multiple aspects aimed at ensuring high-quality continuity, framework, and structure of care.

Healthcare practitioners are required to demonstrate competence while maintaining the freedom to approach diagnosis and therapy within statutory provisions to ensure the provision of quality care.

Supervising Compliance with the Quality Act

A Federal Commission for Control of Healthcare Practice, known as the Federal Control Commission, has been established to oversee the compliance with the Quality Act.

This Commission operates as a multidisciplinary monitoring committee, comprising Dutch-speaking and French-speaking chambers. These chambers are responsible for overseeing health practitioners in the Dutch-speaking, French-speaking, and German-speaking regions, depending on where they primarily practice.

The primary objective of the Federal Control Commission is to regulate the quality of  practice of healthcare practitioners. This regulation is based on three fundamental pillars.

Pillar 1: Fitness to Practise, Patient Safety and Unlawful Healthcare Practices

This pillar encompasses the Federal Control Commission's core responsibilities in ensuring integrity and safety in the healthcare system. The Commission is dedicated to maintaining healthcare practitioners' fitness to practice, including their physical and psychological capacity to provide care, often through expert evaluations.

Moreover, the Commission proactively addresses risks to patient and public health, taking measures to ensure patient safety. If a practitioner is deemed unfit or poses a risk, the Commission has the authority to impose restrictions, suspensions, or revocations on their practice, potentially subject to conditions, with non-compliance resulting in administrative sanctions.

Additionally, this pillar focuses on identifying and addressing illegal healthcare practices, such as unauthorized medical procedures or fraudulent practitioner claims. These activities undergo thorough investigation and, if necessary, are referred to judicial authorities for criminal prosecution. This approach upholds high ethical and practitioner standards in healthcare, safeguarding the integrity of the profession and patient safety.

Pillar 2: Criteria for quality of practice  

The Federal Control Commission oversees healthcare practitioners' adherence to legal quality criteria, ensuring high-quality care. These comprehensive obligations ensure that healthcare practitioners meet the high-quality standards expected of them in delivering care. Responsibilities include: 

  • Guaranteeing diagnostic and therapeutic freedom
  • Validating practitioner competencies via portfolios
  • Maintaining accurate patient records
  • Enforcing advertising guidelines
  • Upholding patient care standards
  • Contributing to care continuity
  • Mandating practice data disclosure

 

If a practitioner violates regulations, the Commission intervenes with appropriate measures such as improvement plans, suspension, or revocation of practice authorization, depending on the severity of the violation. Specific conditions for continued practitioner practice may be imposed, with repeated or serious breaches resulting in administrative penalties.

Additionally, the Commission may grant exemptions for certain professions from participation in continuing care or 'on call services' participation, if no deontological body for the profession exists.

 

Pillar 3: Patient rights 

While the Federal Control Commission presently lacks direct authority over healthcare practitioners' adherence to patient rights, it remains vital for patients to be informed about avenues for recourse in case of disputes. Concerning matters related to patient rights, individuals are referred to the Cell Patients' Rights of the FPS Public Health. 


How does the Federal Control Commission carry out its responsibilities?

The Control Commission executes its duties through various methods, primarily through systematic or ad hoc supervision. Ad hoc supervision may be initiated following a complaint or report, at the discretion of the Control Commission, or upon the request of the Minister.

Inspectors provide essential support to the Federal Control Commission in executing its duties. These inspectors possess authoritative investigative authority and can make all necessary findings.

How to File a Complaint or Submit a Report to the Federal Control Commission?
 

If you wish to file a complaint or submit a report to the Control Commission, visit the web page of the Federal Control Commission.

Learn more

For more information, read the full text of the Quality Act.