Interdepartmental peer review.

Peer review in clinical medicine is concerned with maintaining and enhancing the quality of health care. It does this through formal external assessment by peers of the structures, processes, and outcomes of health care for which standards are known or accepted. It is distinct from appraisal, a confidential process in which individuals' professional and performance development and job progress are reviewed against agreed objectives at regular intervals by an educational supervisor or clinical manager. It is usually applied to specific aspects of care or outcomes of a service but is equally applicable to an entire service or department. Several specialties are now introducing interdepartmental reviews, enabling doctors to share and exchange ideas on best clinical and organisational practice. The British …