Complaints Procedure

We always aim to provide personalised care of the highest standard, but there may be times where you feel that this hasn’t happened. If you have a complaint or concern about the service you receive from the doctors or any of the staff working in the practice, please let us know.

We understand that making a complaint can be stressful at times, so we will do our best to sort out any problem as quickly and efficiently as possible. Most problems can be resolved quite easily, often at the time they arise and with the person(s) concerned and we ask you to try this first.

How to complain

Where you are not able to resolve your complaint in this way and want to make a formal complaint, you should do so as soon as possible after the event, ideally, within a matter of days or at most a few weeks as this will establish what happened more easily. There are several methods in which you can complain:

Complaints Form

Complaints Form « Berinsfield Health Centre

Emailing our Practice Manager:

bobicb-ox.berinsfield.pm@nhs.net

Writing to:

Practice Manager
Berinsfield Health Centre
Fane Drive,
Berinsfield
Wallingford
OX10 7NE

Any complaint should be made within 12 months of the incident or within 12 months of discovering the problem, giving as much detailed information as you can.

If you are a registered patient you can make a complaint about your own care. You cannot complain about someone else’s care without their written consent. In the case of a child this will depend upon the circumstances and an older child may still need to give permission to discuss events with you.

What to expect

We will aim to acknowledge that we’ve received your complaint within 5 working days. Once we have received it, we will try to clarify what’s happened and why to see if there’s anything we can learn from this. After a full investigation you will receive a written response to your complaint as soon as is reasonably possible.

On occasion, you will be invited to attend the surgery to discuss the matter with the practice manager and, where appropriate, one or more of the partners if we think this may help us understand what happened.

Complaining on behalf of someone else

Please note that we keep strictly to the rules of 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.

Confidentiality

All complaints will be treated in the strictest confidence.

Where the investigation of the complaint requires consideration of the patient’s medical records, the practice manager must inform the patient or person acting on his or 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 will keep a record of all complaints and copies of all correspondence relating to complaints but such records must be kept separate from the patient’s medical records.

The practice has a quarterly review of complaints received within the year and the learning issues or changes to procedures which have arisen are documented.

If you need support with your complaint

You can seek support with VoiceAbility either on their website: www.voiceability.org, by phone at: 0300 330 5454 or by email at: nhscomplaints@voiceability.org

If you are dissatisfied with the outcome

If you are not happy with the response from the practice, you can refer your complaint to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman who investigates complaints about the NHS in England.

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

Telephone: 0345 0154033

Make a complaint to The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman