NHS Feedback & Complaints

1. Acknowledgment & Initial Response
   We will acknowledge receipt of your complaint within 3 working days, typically within 48 hours. You may receive a phone call from our team to gather more details or clarify your concern. If your complaint can be resolved quickly (e.g., a missing prescription), we will do so promptly and inform you of the resolution.
2. Investigation Process
   If your complaint requires a detailed investigation, we will review the issue with the relevant staff members, such as clinicians, team leaders, or other designated personnel. We may need to gather additional information or documents related to your concern.
3. Resolution & Feedback
   Once we complete our investigation, we will communicate the outcome to you. For straightforward concerns, we may resolve the issue informally and provide an explanation or apology. For more complex issues, we will send you a formal response outlining what happened, what we’ve learned, and any actions taken to improve our services.
4. Follow-up & Closure
   After providing our response, we will ensure your concerns are fully addressed. If you are satisfied, the case will be closed. If not, we will work with you further to find a satisfactory resolution. You will receive written confirmation once your complaint is closed.

• Receiving Your Complaint:
  Complaints can come verbally, by email, letter, or through our reception or triage teams. All complaints are logged by our dedicated team members and added to our complaint management system.
• Acknowledgment:
  Within 3 working days, we will confirm we have received your complaint, thank you for bringing it to our attention, and provide an initial timeframe for investigation.
• Investigation:
  The complaint will be reviewed and investigated by the appropriate staff or the Complaints Manager. If your concern involves clinical care, a clinical investigation will be conducted. For administrative issues, the relevant team leaders will handle the inquiry.
• Outcome & Final Response:
  Once the investigation concludes, we will communicate our findings and any actions taken. You will receive a formal letter explaining the situation and what we have done in response.
• Closing the Complaint:
  After you are satisfied with the response, the case will be closed. We will document your feedback and any lessons learned to improve our practices.

The Local Authority Social Services and National Health Service Complaints (England) Regulations 2009 oblige NHS organisations to have arrangements in place to deal with complaints. The Health Act 2009 places a duty on NHS Organisations (including contractors) to “have regard to the NHS Constitution”.

The NHS Constitution sets out the following rights for patients:

• To have the right to have any complaint about NHS services dealt with efficiently and to have it properly investigated
• To have the right to know the outcome of any investigation of a complaint
• To have the right to take the complaint to the Independent Health Service Ombudsman if not satisfied with the way the complaint has been handled by the NHS organisation.

If you have any complaints please email us.

The Complaints Manager is Deputy Practice Manager, Louise Bridle.

The Responsible Partners for Complaints are Dr Laura Marshall-Andres & Shilpa Patel.

Both officers have a duty to ensure complaints are handled in compliance with the regulations.

The Ombudsman is completely independent of the NHS and Government. The Ombudsman can be contacted at Millbank Tower, Millbank, London SW1P 4QP, tel: 0345 0154033, www.ombudsman.org.uk.

If you would like to join our Patient Participation Group, please email Shilpa Patel. Our PPG gives you a voice from a patient’s perspective on the services our Centre offers, and an opportunity to input in the wider health agenda. It is our aim that the PPG is driven by the patients who belong to it, not the practice.

Our commisioners are Sussex ICB and they can be contacted via this online form, by telephone: 0300 140 9854, or by email: sxicb.contactus@nhs.net