Complaints
Practice Complaints Procedure
Patient feedback is important to us as it helps us to improve the service we provide to patients. We take patient complaints seriously and will attempt to address your concerns to your satisfaction.
How do I make a complaint?
Please choose one of the following options:
- Telephone the surgery on 01636 813561. If available, you will be transferred to a senior member of the practice team who will be happy to hear your complaint.
- If you are in the practice, ask to speak to a senior member of the practice team. They will be pleased to talk to you if they are available to do so.
- Fill in a Patient Complaints Form and post it back to the practice or deliver it back by hand. Please address your envelope clearly to the Practice Manager.
If you are complaining on behalf of someone else, the practice needs to know that you have their permission to do so. In order to provide this consent, the person on behalf of whom you are complaining will need to provide either verbal or written consent. For written consent, please use the Patient Third Party Consent for Complaints form where possible.
What Happens Next?
If you speak to a senior member of the practice team, either face-to-face or by telephone, we will aim to resolve your complaint within 24 hours. You will however be informed if any further investigations if necessary.
If you send in a written complaint, this will be acknowledged within 3 working days. The practice will respond, after investigation, within the timeframe specified to you at the acknowledgement stage of the process. Some complaints may take longer to address but you will be informed of a response time. If this cannot be met, the practice will keep you informed.
Please be assured making a complaint will not adversely affect your ongoing healthcare at the practice. We will deal with you fairly, compassionately and will endeavour to resolve the situation to a satisfactory conclusion.
Wherever possible, we aim to learn from complaints and take action to avoid similar occurrences.
How do I complain to someone Independent?
GP Practices would prefer to have the opportunity to answer complaints ourselves in the first instance. However, you may pass your complaint directly to:
Patient Experience Team
Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Integrated Care Board
Sir John Robinson House
Sir John Robinson Way
Arnold
Nottingham
NG5 6DA
Tel: 0115 8839570
Email: [email protected]
If you would like further information please follow the link to the ICB website: Patient Experience and Complaints – NHS Nottingham and Nottinghamshire ICB
However, please note, patients cannot raise the same complaint with the practice and ICB.
Is there a time limit?
A complaint must be made within 12 months of the date of the incident that caused the problem or the date of discovering the problem.
Please remember, the quicker you complain, the easier it will be to investigate the facts.
If you are not satisfied with the outcome?
You can contact the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) on 0345 015 4033.
For more information see their website www.ombudsman.org.uk
Other useful contacts
POhWER, NHS Complaints Advocacy, on 0300 456 2370. For more information see their website www.pohwer.net