Complaints
Our aim is to give you the highest possible standard of service and we will try to deal quickly with any problems that may occur. We operate a practice complaints procedure as part of the NHS system for dealing with complaints. If you have a complaint or are concerned about the service you have received from the doctors or from any of the staff working in the practice, please let us know.
How to complain:
We hope that most problems can be sorted out easily and quickly, ideally 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.
A complaint should be made as soon as possible after an event and not more than 12 months after the date the matter complained about occurred or the date that the patient/client was aware of the event. The time limit should be extended if there were good grounds for not making the complaint earlier and it is still possible to investigate the complaint fairly and effectively.
Complaints should be addressed to the Practice Manager, or a GP Partner. Alternatively, you can make an appointment with the Practice Manager or Deputy Practice Manager in order to discuss your concerns.
Process:
You may submit your complaint verbally, using our complaint form available from reception, or writing either by email or letter. For electronic means please submit your complaint to the main practice email address: nencicb-ng.prospectadmin@nhs.net
Your complaint will be acknowledged as soon as possible by a member of the management team. This will be done via the communication method you used to raise the complaint or by the method you request within the complaint.
Your complaint will be assigned a lead and will investigated which will usually be a member of the management team. Depending on the nature of the complaint the investigation may involve multiple staff members. If further information is required this will be requested during the investigation phase.
Once the investigation has been completed the lead staff will contact you to discuss or send you a response.
There is no time frame to when complaints will be responded to however the Practice will aim to complete this as soon as is practicable.
What we shall do:
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 wish to do this)
- Make sure you received an apology (where this is appropriate)
- Try to make sure that the problem does not occur again
Complaining on behalf of someone else:
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 required, unless they are incapable (because of illness) of providing this.
If it is felt that the person making the complaint on behalf of another person is not doing so in the best interests of the other person, the complaint must not be considered under the regulations and written notification must be given to the representative stating the reason for the decision.
Confidentiality:
All complaints are treated in the strictest confidence.
Where the investigation of the complaint requires consideration of the patient’s medical records, the Practice Manager or GP Partner must inform the patient or person acting on his/her behalf if the investigation will involve disclosure of information contained in those records to a person other than the Practice or an employee of the Practice.
The practice keeps a record of all complaints and copies of all correspondence relating to complaints, but all such records are kept separate from patients’ medical records.