Complaints

How to complain

We hope that most problems can be resolved easily and quickly, often at the time they arise and with the person concerned. If your problem cannot be resolved 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 at most a few weeks, as this will enable us to establish what happened more easily. If it is not possible to do that, please let us have details of your complaint:

• within 12 months of the incident that caused the problem, or
• within 12 months of discovering that you have a problem

Complaints should be sent to: tgccg.complaints.medlockvalemedical@nhs.net

Alternative route to making a complaint

Alternative route to making a complaint

If you do not wish to complain directly to the Practice, you will now contact Greater Manchester integrated care board instead of NHS England.

Details of how to do this can be found at the following website, under the ‘Local area feedback and complaints’ section:

https://gmintegratedcare.org.uk/have-your-say/contact-us/

What we will do

All complaints are logged and will be investigated in order to provide an appropriate response. Complaints are dealt with on a case by case basis. NHSE guidelines do not specify a set timeframe for complaints handling, but we endeavour to deal with all complaints in a timely manner. Where investigations are more complex, we will advise complainants that this is the case. Please note that we ensure patient confidentiality is maintained in line with Data Protection Regulations, therefore if you are complaining on behalf of someone else, we will require their consent before investigations are carried out. When we look into your complaint, we will aim to:

• Find out what happened and identify any failings
• Provide details of the investigation, findings and outcome

Help and Support

NHS complaints advocacy service – Patient Advice and Liaison Service –

“During working hours (Monday to Friday), all concerns should be directed to the PALS & Complaints Team, on 0161 922 4466. Staff will agree a course of action with you and make a record of your concerns. An answer machine is available if the team are currently on another call or you are contacting us out of hours. If you wish to leave a message a PALS & Complaints Officer will return your call at the earliest opportunity or email palsandcomplaints@tgh.nhs.uk

Unresolved Complaints

If you wish to continue this complaint or are unhappy with our response, you will need to speak with the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman. Details of how to access this service and other advocacy services available can be found on their website – https://www.ombudsman.org.uk/making-complaint

“If you need advice:

Call 0345 015 4033

Monday to Thursday 8.30am to 5.00pm | Friday 8.30am to 12pm

Calls are charged at local or national rates.” – – https://www.ombudsman.org.uk/making-complaint

Violent or Abusive Patients

The Practice operates a Zero Tolerance Policy. Patients who behave in a violent or abusive manner will be removed from the list with immediate effect.