A controlled page has to be reviewed on a schedule, and once a year is a common interval. The review confirms the page is still fit for use. When the words are still right, you keep the same revision and you record that the review took place.
What is a document review
ISO standards such as 9001 and 13485 expect your documented information to be reviewed and controlled on a scheduled basis.
A document review means you decide whether the document is still suitable, adequate, and effective. Suitable means it still fits the work, adequate means it still has what people need, and effective means it still does the job it was written for.
Quality procedures often set that check once a year, and teams treat the review date as a reason to edit the page. Confluence saves a new version, the revision number moves, and the procedure text is the same as last year. The history fills up with revisions that were made so the calendar could be closed.
If the SOP isn’t right, or if something such as a step, a limit, or a form has to change, you issue a new revision.
If the SOP is still effective, the review is finished when you record it, and the revision stays where it is.
Why is a new revision a weak record
An auditor will ask when this SOP was last reviewed, which version was checked, and who took part. It's the date, the version, and the names that answer that question. A revision that exists only because the year changed is a weak record, and it makes the real changes harder to pick out of the history. On the line, a posted copy can also fall out of step with a new revision that says the same thing, and people get pulled into retraining they did not need.
How to record the review on the checked version
QC Documents for Confluence Cloud stores the review on the page. You set how often the page should be reviewed, and when the review is done, you add it to the Confluence version you actually checked. You leave the page and its revision value as they are when the content is still right.
A space admin turns page reviews on for the space first.
- Go to the space that holds the SOP.
- Click the three dots next to the space name and select Space settings.
- In the left list, open Integrations, then click QC Documents.
- Open the Settings tab and turn page reviews on.
Then set the schedule on the page.
- Open the page.
- In the top-right corner, click More actions (•••), then Apps, then QC Documents - Page Overview.
- Turn the page reviews toggle to Enabled.
- Set the review frequency so it matches the interval in your procedure.
- Set the priority and the lead reviewer.
When the review is done and the SOP is still correct, record it on that version. Leave the page as it is, so the Confluence version and the revision stay put.
- Open QC Documents - Page Overview again.
- Click Add Review.
- Select the date of the review, the Confluence version you reviewed, the lead reviewer, and the participants.
- Add a comment if you want to note why the page was left unchanged.
- Click Save.
If the review finds that the content has to change, edit the page and then assign a new revision value to that Confluence version from the same Page Overview. That is the case for a new revision. A review that finds no change can stay on the version you already have.
To see the reviews across the space, open Space settings, then Integrations, then QC Documents, and stay on the Overview tab. The table lists each page with its review status. Filter by review status, by priority, or by the lead reviewer when you want one group on its own.
Try QC Documents for free!
Start your free trial today by installing the QC Documents for Confluence Cloud directly from the Atlassian Marketplace.
