We are here to help you and welcome comments and constructive suggestions to help us improve our service.

If you would like to make a comment or if you have experienced problems please speak to the reception supervisor who will endeavour to assist you.

If you would prefer to write, please address your letter to James Cook, our Practice Manager.

Practice Complaints Summary

If you have a complaint or concern about the service you have received from the doctors or any of the Staff working in this practice, please let us know. We operate a practice complaints procedure as part of a NHS system for dealing with complaints. Our complaints system meets national criteria. Not all staff working at the surgery are employed by the practice. If your complaint involves one of them we will work with the relevant employer to assure you receive a detailed response.

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 a few weeks – because this will enable us to establish what happened more easily.

The complaint needs to be made within 12 months, either from the date of the incident or from when the complainant first knew about it. These should be sent to our Practice Manager, James Cook. We prefer complaints to be in writing as it enables us to understand your complaint better so that we can respond fully, but if this is not possible please call to arrange a telephone call with our Complaints Manager.

Alternatively you can speak to James Cook with informal complaints or comments. This might be more suitable for minor matters.

We will acknowledge your complaint within two working days and aim to have looked into your complaint within two weeks, but sometimes it can take longer. When we look into your complaint, we will aim to:

• Find out what happened and what went wrong;
• Provide you with a formal response to your complaint;
• Make sure you receive an apology, where this is appropriate;
• If necessary, arrange a meeting for you to discuss the problem with us and if appropriate, those concerned with your complaint;
• Make sure you receive an apology, where this is appropriate;
• Identify what we can do to make sure the problem doesn’t happen again.
• Explain how you can escalate your complaint if you are not satisfied with the outcome.

Complaining on behalf of someone else

Please note that we keep strictly to the rule 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.

Right to complain

All clinical complaints are investigated by our senior clinician Dr Mark Reed.  Alternatively you have a right to complain directly to NHS England at the address below. You should be aware that any complaints received by NHS England will be forwarded to the Practice for an initial response:-

NHS England
PO Box 16738
Redditch
B97 9PT

By email to: england.contactus@nhs.net

Please state: ‘For the attention of the complaints team’ in the subject line.

By telephone: 0300 311 22 33 (Monday to Friday 8am to 6pm, except Wednesday when they open at 9.30am and excluding English Bank Holidays)

The Health Service Ombudsman

The Health Service Ombudsman has published a booklet that describes the ‘six principles for remedy’ in relation to complaints handling and involves:

• Getting it right
• Being customer focused
• Being open and accountable
• Acting fairly and proportionately
• Putting things right
• Seeking continuous improvements

If you remain unhappy after everything has been done to try to resolve your concern or complaint you have the right to approach the Ombudsman.

Tel: 0345 015 4033 (Monday to Friday 8.30am to 5.30pm except bank holidays)

Mobile: Send a text to our “call back” service: 07624 813 005, with your name and mobile number.