Complaints Procedure

We hope that most problems can be sorted out easily and quickly, often at the time they arise and with the person concerned.

If your problem cannot be sorted out in this way and you wish to make a complaint, we would like you to let us know as soon as possible – ideally within a matter of days or at most a few weeks – because this will enable us to establish what happened more easily.

NHS Regulations

New regulations were introduced in 2009 as follows

The Regulations require practices to:

• Publicise our complaints procedures
• Acknowledge receipt of a complaint and offer to discuss the matter within three working days
• Deal efficiently with complaints and investigate them properly and appropriately
• Write to the complainant on completion of a complaint investigation explaining how it has been resolved, what appropriate action has been taken, and reminding them of their right to take the matter to the Health Services Ombudsman if they are still unhappy
• Assist the complainant in following the complaints procedure, or provide advice on where they may obtain such assistance
• Ensure there is a designated manager for complaints
• Have someone senior who is responsible for both the complaints policy and learning from complaints
• Produce an annual report about complaints that have been received, the issues they raise, and any matters where action has been taken or is to be taken to improve services as a result of those complaints.

People wishing to make complaints:

• Must do so within 12 months of an incident happening or of becoming aware of the matter complained about
• Can choose to complain to NHS England instead of the service provider

On the back of these regulations our policy/procedure is as follows:

How to Complain

We hope that most problems can be sorted out easily and quickly, often at the time they arise and with the person concerned. If your problem cannot be sorted out in this way and you wish to make a complaint, we would like you to let us know as soon as possible – ideally within a matter of days or at most a few weeks – because this will enable us to establish what happened more easily. If it is not possible to do that, please let us have details of your complaint:

• Within twelve months of the incident that caused the problem

OR

• After twelve months of the incident only if you could not have known about the issue within the initial twelve months

Complaints should be addressed to Tracy James - Business Manager or Denise Simmonds - Office Manager, who are responsible for handing all complaints. They will explain the complaints procedure to you and will make sure that your concerns are dealt with promptly. All complaints need to be in writing to our practice address or by using our secure complaints form. It is a great help if you can be as specific as possible about your complaint.

Under regulations introduced in April 2009 you can, if you prefer, or if you do not feel your complaint has been dealt with satisfactorily at Practice level, contact NHS England: How to make a complaint via NHS England.

What we shall do

We shall acknowledge your complaint within 5 working days and aim to have looked into your complaint within 28 working days of the date when you raised it with us. If the complaint is complicated things may take a bit longer but we will of course keep you advised. We shall then be in a position to offer you an explanation, or a meeting with the people involved.

When we look into your complaint we shall aim to:

• Find out what happened and what went wrong
• Make it possible for you to discuss the problem with those concerned, if you would like this
• Make sure you receive an apology, where this is appropriate
• Identify what we can do to make sure the problem does not happen again.

Complaining on behalf of someone else

Please note that we keep strictly to the rules of medical confidentiality. If you are complaining on behalf of someone else, we have to know that you have their permission to do so. A note signed by the person concerned will be needed, unless they are incapable (because of illness) of providing this.

Complaining to the Health Services Ombudsman

If your complaint can not be satisfactorily resolved through the above process, you have the right to take the matter to the Health Services Ombudsman. How to complain to the Health Services Ombudsman.