Complaints

Complaints Procedure

Making a Complaint

The practice complaints manager at Latchford Medical Centre is the Practice Manager, Katy Taberner and our Complaints Lead is Dr Fiona Davis.

Most problems can be sorted out quickly and easily, often at the time they arise with the person concerned and this may 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, preferably 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 below.

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 ask at reception for this. You can provide this in your own format providing this covers all the necessary aspects.

We look to settle complaints as soon as possible but as we aim to investigate them thoroughly sometimes this can take time. However, we will always endeavour to keep you updated in regard to our time scales. Following a formal investigation we will send a formal reply in writing, or you may be invited to meet with the person(s) concerned to attempt to resolve the issue.

If the matter is likely to take a longer time than we anticipated 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. 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 response sent to you.

Where your complaint involves more than one organisation (e.g. social services) we will liaise with that organisation so that you receive one coordinated reply. We may need your consent to do this. Where your complaint has been sent initially to an incorrect organisation, we may seek your consent to forward this to the correct person to deal with.

The final response letter will include details of the result of your complaint and also your right to escalate the matter further if you remain dissatisfied with the response.

Should you have any disabilities or special requirements that we need to be aware of to ensure we communicate our findings to you clearly and concisely please inform Practice Manager know as soon as possible.

In some circumstances to ensure that the investigation is completed thoroughly we will need to access personal medical records. Please ensure you inform the Practice if you would prefer the Practice Manager to access your medical records.

To ensure you feel supported you can request an advocate to support you during this procedure. Please let the Practice Manager know if this is something you would like to take advantage of.

Complaining on Behalf of Someone Else

We keep to the strict rules of medical and personal confidentiality. If you wish to make a complaint and are not the patient involved, we will require the written consent of the patient to confirm that they are unhappy with their treatment and that we can deal with someone else about it.

Please ask at reception for the Complaints Form which contains a suitable authority for the patient to sign to enable the complaint to proceed.

Where the patient is incapable of providing consent due to illness or Accident it may still be possible to deal with the complaint. Please provide the precise details of the circumstances which prevent this in your covering letter.

Please note that we are unable to discuss any issue relating to someone else without their express permission, which must be in writing, signed and dated, unless the circumstances above apply.

We may still need to correspond directly with the patient, or may be able to deal directly with the third party.

This depends on the wording of the authority provided.

Don’t want to speak to anyone at Latchford Medical Centre about your complaint?

NHS England welcomes concerns, compliments and complaints as valuable feedback that will help us learn from your experiences and make improvements to services, we commission.

You have the right to approach to Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) or approach the Ombudsman for help or advice; their contact details are:

Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS)

Based at NHS Cheshire and Merseyside Integrated Care Board, they provide confidential advice to help signpost you in the correct direction to sort out any concerns you may have about the care we provide and guide you through the different services available from the NHS. 

Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALs) - NHS Cheshire and Merseyside

Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman

Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman
Millbank Tower,
Millbank, London,
SW1P 4QP

Tel: 0345 0154033

Website: www.ombudsman.org.uk