Most problems can be sorted out quickly and easily, often at the time they arise with the person concerned and this should be the approach you try first.
Where you are not able to resolve your complaint in this way and wish to make a formal complaint you should do so, in writing as soon as possible after the event and ideally within a few days, as this helps us to establish what happened more easily. In any event, this should be:
Within 12 months of the incident,
or within 12 months of you discovering that you giving as much detail as you can.
If you are a registered patient you can complain about your own care. You are unable to complain about someone else’s treatment without their written authority. See the separate section in this leaflet.
We are able to provide you with a separate complaints form to register your complaint and this includes a third-party authority form to enable a complaint to be made by someone else. Please download the form attached or ask at reception for this. You can provide this in your own format providing this covers all the necessary aspects. We would need to see ID of our patient giving consent.
What we do next
We look to resolve complaints as soon as practically possible.
We will acknowledge receipt within 5 working days, and aim to have looked into the matter within 28 working days of the date it was received. If the matter is likely to take longer than this we will let you know, and keep you informed as the investigation progresses.
When looking into a complaint we attempt to see what happened and why, to see if there is something we can learn from this, and make it possible for you to discuss the issue with those involved if you would like to do so.
When the investigations are complete your complaint will be determined and a final written response sent to you.