NHS complaints
Making a complaint is a good way of finding out more
about what happened. Unless your treatment was private,
you can make a complaint using the NHS Complaints Procedure.
There are, broadly speaking, two stages to the NHS Complaints
Procedure:
Stage one - Local Resolution
In the first instance a complaint should be made to either the
organisation's Complaints Manager or a relevant member of staff,
such as the ward manager, nurse or doctor concerned. This is
otherwise known as local resolution.
All hospitals, dentists, opticians, GP surgeries and other NHS
care providers should have leaflets and information concerning how
complaints can be made. You should ask for this information.
A complaint may be made orally, in writing or by email. In
circumstances where the complaint is only minor, such as rudeness
by a member of staff, it may be more appropriate to make the
complaint in person. Most minor complaints can usually be resolved
on the spot by frontline staff without having to call upon more
formal measures.
However, if the person to whom the complaint is made cannot deal
with it that person must obtain guidance from the Complaints
Manager. All NHS Trusts and Primary Care Trusts have Complaint
Managers who advise the complainant and in some circumstances it
may be more appropriate for the complainant to make a complaint to
the Complaints Manager than the member of staff concerned.
Where the complaint is made orally the Complaint Manager must
make a written record of the complaint and provide a copy of the
written record to the complainant. If the complaint cannot be dealt
with immediately then the complainant should receive an
acknowledgement from the Complaints Manager by letter within three
working days after the day of receipt.
The NHS provider must investigate the complaint in a manner
appropriate to resolve it 'speedily and efficiently' and during the
investigation keep the complainant informed as to the progress of
the investigation.
The NHS provider must prepare a written response to the
complaint which includes...
- an explanation of how the complaint has been considered;
- the conclusions reached in relation to the complaint;
- confirmation of whether any action needed has been taken or is
proposed to be taken.
The NHS provider must send the complainant a response within 6
months of the complaint being received. If the provider does send
the response within this period then they must notify the
complainant and explain the reason for the delay.
There is wide divergence in the way that the NHS treatment
providers actually deal with complaints at the investigative stage.
Much seems to depend on whom within the Trust is given the task of
dealing with the complaint. Consequently, the speed and quality of
complaint resolution will vary from Trust to Trust.
Stage Two - Health Service Ombudsman
If a complainant is still unhappy with the outcome, they can
then go to the Health Service Ombudsman, who is independent of the
NHS and government. For more information on the Health Service
Ombudsman visit: www.ombudsman.org.uk or telephone
0345 0154033.
Time Limits
A complaint must be made not later than 12 months after the date
on which the matter which is the subject of the complainant
occurred or, if later, the date on which the matter which is the
subject of the complaint came to the notice of the complainant. The
time limit may be waived by the NHS provider if they are satisfied
that the complainant had good reasons for not making the complaint
within that time limit and notwithstanding the delay it is possible
for them to investigate the compliant 'effectively and fairly'.
Private treatment
If your treatment was private, you need to follow the same steps
as you would for NHS care, except that you won't be able to use the
NHS complaints procedure. However, all private hospitals and
private clinics are required to operate their own complaints
procedure including information on how to take your complaint
further.
For further information on how MyInjuryLawyer can help with an
NHS complaint, please call us free on 0800 043
4299.