Feeback, Complaints & Compliments

 

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The Partners and staff at Havens Health Medical Practice welcome your feedback on all aspects of our service. We recognise that your comments can help us to improve the quality of the services we offer to you and we are committed to this improvement.

  • If you have a complaint or concern about the service you have received from the doctors or any of the staff working here, please do tell us.
  • This information tells you how to make a complaint, what you can expect of us, and what we can expect of you.
  • We would like to encourage your comments, (good as well as bad), suggestions and helpful criticism at all times.
  • Please either write, telephone, go to the practice website or use our online feedback forms.
  • Once Covid restrictions are lifted you will also be able to come into the surgery to drop off your complaint. 
 

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 at most a few weeks – because we can then find out what has happened more easily.

 

What You Can Expect from Us

  • A courteous explanation of how to make a complaint from any member of our practice team
  • A written record of your complaint if appropriate
  • To be listened to
  • To receive acknowledgement of your complaint within five working days
  • An opportunity to discuss your complaint with a senior member of the practice team
  • A full explanation and, where appropriate, an apology within a reasonable timeframe
  • A courteous explanation of how to take your complaint to a higher authority, if you are not satisfied with our action
  • We do take every suggestion and complaint seriously, and each one is considered when we come to plan our services or change the way things are done
 

What We Ask of You

  • Please be sensitive about who you are speaking to (e.g. receptionists are not responsible for the actions of doctors.)
  • Please be prepared to put your complaint in writing if appropriate. Please address yourself to the Practice Manager, Mrs Sarah Liron at the practice address (Anchor Medical Centre site) or use our online feedback forms
  • Please be specific about times, places and people involved, so that we can fully investigate your complaint.
  • Please allow us time to record the details of your complaint, and to investigate appropriately before giving a full explanation.
 

Complaining on Behalf of Someone Else

  • Please note that we keep strictly to the rules of medical confidentiality. If you are complaining on behalf of someone else, we have to know 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.
 

If You Are Unhappy with Our Response

  • We hope that, if you have a problem, you will use our practice complaints procedure.
  • We believe this will give us the best chance of putting right whatever has gone wrong and an opportunity too to improve the way we do things.
  • But this does not affect your right to approach NHS Sussex, if you feel unable to approach us directly.
  • If, however, after we have undertaken a full investigation into your complaint and we have made our response you are unhappy with the result of our investigation, you are entitled to refer your complaint on to the Parliamentary & Health Service Ombudsman.

The Parliamentary & Health Service Ombudsman

Tel: 0345 015 4033

VISIT WEBSITE

 

Other Useful Contacts

PALS – Patient Advice & Liaison Service

 

POhWER – NHS Complaints Advocacy