Complaints Procedure

COMPLAINTS POLICY

Our complaints policy and procedure is designed to provide a fast outcome and resolution to any complaint we receive. Any complaint is immediately escalated to our most senior team members, which aim to reply and provide a resolution in just two days.

The complaints policy centres around the following key principles:

1. Being open and accountable
2. Making things right
3. Acting fairly
4. Making future improvements

 

You should be assured that once you make your complaint formally or informally (in person, by telephone, by email), you will be contacted by a senior team member within 24 hours who will deal with the matter promptly and aim to complete investigations and enquiries within two days. They will likely offer you a resolution even before further investigations are taking place if it is clear that your complaint is caused by a lower than expected service.

Depending on the nature of your complaint, the senior team member will investigate with all relevant parties, look at ways to prevent the issue recurring and correct the issue at hand either with a refund or additional service offer.

Complaints are always included in our Clinical Governance and Audit meetings and used to improve our service. We share learning and actions from complaints with all team members and work collaboratively to improve the quality of the service and prevent a recurrence.

Here is more detail:

In relation to complaints received, City Walk-in Clinic will demonstrate that the Practice Team:

• Understands the importance of dealing effectively with complaints in a timely manner, as well as acknowledging and acting on feedback received
• Will ensure that all complaints are directed to the designated complaints manager, as the responsible person
• Recognises that failure to deal with a complaint is a serious matter that could be considered a breach of the General Medical Services contract at City Walk-in Clinic
• Will aim to resolve verbal complaints to the complainant’s satisfaction within 48 hours – as it can be difficult to separate a complaint from a concern, this policy will be followed whenever dissatisfaction is clearly expressed
• Will acknowledge a complaint and offer a discussion about the handling of the complaint with the complainant within 2 working days of receiving a complaint
• Will keep the complainant informed if a response is delayed
• Has functional knowledge of how to deal with complaints which is equitably applied
• Considers the quality of care provided by putting themselves in the place of the Service User and assessing their expectations for the service
• Reviews services and how they are delivered in relation to complaints and feedback received
• Makes changes where necessary or appropriate to improve services and the Service User experience
• Monitors outputs from changes and developments as part of a continuous cycle of improvement
• Shares feedback and changes made with Service Users, stakeholders, commissioners and local health networks
• Keeps accurate records and documentation for all complaints and feedback
• Understands statutory obligations in respect of the Duty of Candour and will follow the agreed policy and procedure

Compliments, Suggestions and Feedback

City Walk-in Clinic will ensure that services delivered are effective and responsive to the needs of Service Users, carers and other users by encouraging and welcoming feedback from Service Users about the service and their experiences.

City Walk-in Clinic will comply with the April 2015 contractual requirement for all General Practices in England to establish and maintain a Service User participation group (PPG) and make reasonable efforts to:

• Identify areas of good practice, strengths and what City Walk-in Clinic does well
• Identify areas for improvement, lessons learned and any changes to be made as a result
• Demonstrate that City Walk-in Clinic values Service Users’ and others’ concerns and comments about the work of the Practice Team by making changes in response to feedback received

City Walk-in Clinic will reflect on compliments, suggestions and other feedback received formally and informally depending on the content.

A record of all compliments, suggestions and other feedback will be maintained, together with the register of complaints at City Walk-in Clinic and will be reviewed on a regular basis at senior team meetings in addition to regular and annual complaints reviews.

Compliments, suggestions and feedback received will be explored by the team at City Walk-in Clinic and a response provided to the individual as well as to the wider Service User and stakeholders.