Which sequence describes the clinical audit cycle?

Set a standard, measure practice, identify gaps, make changes, re-audit

Guess the problem, make a change, hope it works

Publish findings without measuring practice

Why must an audit include re-auditing after changes are made?

To check whether the change actually improved practice

Because one measurement is always enough

What does PDSA stand for in quality improvement?

Prepare, Deliver, Score, Assess

What should changes in practice be based on?

The best available evidence and standards

Personal habit and tradition alone

Part B6 of 8 Improving Safety and Quality of Care Chapter 67 of 75

Clinical Audit and Quality Improvement Questions

NMC CBT audit practice: the audit cycle, audit versus research, PDSA cycles, evidence-based practice, and worked scenario answers.

Start reading ← NMC CBT hub ~5 min read

By JobLabs Editorial · UK healthcare reference editorial team

· July 16, 2026 · Updated Jul 17, 2026 · 2 min read

Good care is not a matter of good intentions; it can be measured, and where it falls short, improved. Clinical audit and quality improvement are how that happens, and the CBT tests whether you understand the process.

The audit cycle

Audit works as a cycle, and knowing the steps is the core of most questions:

Set a standard, drawn from the best available evidence.
Measure current practice against it.
Identify the gaps between practice and standard.
Make changes to close the gaps.
Re-audit to check whether practice actually improved.

The step people forget, and the one the exam tests hardest, is re-auditing. Measuring once, changing something, and walking away is not an audit; it is a snapshot. Re-auditing closes the loop by showing whether the change worked. An audit that stops after the first measurement is incomplete.

Audit versus research

A common question asks you to tell audit and research apart. Audit measures current practice against an existing standard, to improve care locally. Research generates new knowledge, testing what the standard should be. Put simply, audit asks whether we are doing what we should already be doing; research asks what we should be doing in the first place. Measuring hand hygiene against a known standard is audit, not research.

Testing changes with PDSA

Quality improvement often uses PDSA cycles: Plan, Do, Study, Act. You plan a change, try it on a small scale, study the result, and act on what you learn, repeating as needed. It lets teams test improvements safely before rolling them out widely, rather than imposing an untested change across a whole ward.

Grounded in evidence

Underneath all of this is evidence-based practice. Changes are based on the best available evidence and recognised standards, not on habit, tradition, speed or one person’s untested opinion. That is how outdated or unsafe practice gets replaced with something better, and how audit turns measurement into real improvement in care. Next: human factors and safety culture. Five audit scenarios first.

Sources & further reading

Key takeaway from Clinical Audit and Quality Improvement Questions

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between audit and research?

Audit measures current practice against an existing standard to improve care locally. Research generates new knowledge, testing what best practice should be. Audit asks whether we are doing what we should; research asks what we should be doing.

Why is re-auditing important?

Re-auditing closes the loop. After making a change, you measure again to see whether practice actually improved. Without re-audit, you never know if the change worked, so an audit that stops after one measurement is incomplete.

What is a PDSA cycle?

Plan, Do, Study, Act: a small, structured way to test a change. You plan a change, try it on a small scale, study the result, and act on what you learn, repeating as needed. It is a common quality improvement method for testing improvements safely.

Check your understanding

Quick quiz: Clinical Audit and Quality Improvement Questions

5questions. Click an answer to see the explanation. Your score is saved on this device only.

1
Which sequence describes the clinical audit cycle?
The audit cycle sets a standard, measures practice against it, identifies gaps, implements change, and then re-audits to check for improvement. Guessing, collecting data once, or skipping measurement all fall short of a proper audit.
2
A team measures hand hygiene compliance against a set standard to improve local practice. Is this audit or research?
Measuring current practice against an existing standard to improve care locally is clinical audit. Research would be generating new knowledge about what the standard should be. This example checks whether practice meets a known standard, which is audit.
3
Why must an audit include re-auditing after changes are made?
Re-auditing closes the loop by measuring again after a change, showing whether practice genuinely improved. Without it, you cannot know if the change worked. An audit that stops after the first measurement is incomplete, not simply thorough enough.
4
What does PDSA stand for in quality improvement?
PDSA is Plan, Do, Study, Act: a structured cycle for testing a change on a small scale, studying the result, and acting on it. It lets teams test improvements safely and repeatedly before wider roll-out.
5
What should changes in practice be based on?
Improving care means basing practice on the best available evidence and recognised standards, which is what audit measures against. Relying on habit, speed, or untested opinion is how outdated or unsafe practice persists.