Have your say
We would rather know when something has gone wrong. Most problems are resolved more quickly than people expect, and telling us is how we identify what needs to change.
This applies to all three of our surgeries — Winscombe, Banwell and Parklands Medical Centre — and to every aspect of our service: the care you received, prescribing, appointments, the conduct of our staff, our premises, and how we have handled your information.
Making a complaint will not affect your care. You will be treated in exactly the same way, by the same people.
Compliments are passed on to the people involved. They are much appreciated, particularly by staff who most often hear from patients when something has gone wrong.
If you have a suggestion about how the practice is run, our Patient Participation Group is a group of patient volunteers who raise matters of this kind with us.
Please contact us by whichever method is easiest for you. There is no form to complete, and you do not have to put your complaint in writing if you would prefer to speak to someone.
Please tell us what happened, when it happened, who was involved if you know, and what you would like us to do in response. If you do not know a name or an exact date, please send your complaint regardless — we can usually establish the remaining details.
Please give us your name. If you complain anonymously we will still consider what you have told us and act upon it where we can — we do not disregard anonymous complaints. However, we will not be able to investigate the matter fully, and we will have no means of telling you what we found. If you provide your name and contact details, we can do both.
You do not have to be a registered patient to complain. If something the practice did, or failed to do, has affected you, you may complain in your own right — for example, if you were given incorrect information, or were refused registration.
Rebecca Coyle, our Practice Manager, is our complaints lead and will manage your complaint.
Our final response to you is signed by one of the partners.
Where a complaint involves clinical care, it is also reviewed by one of our GP clinical leads for complaints, Dr Katie Ellison or Dr Ruth Colson. A complaint about a particular doctor is never investigated by that doctor.
We aim to send our full response within 21 days. Some complaints take longer. If yours does, we will explain why, give you a revised date, and keep you informed until the matter is concluded.
If you raise a concern at reception or by telephone, we can often resolve it by the end of the next working day. It is still recorded as a complaint, so that it is included when we review what needs to change.
Please complain within 12 months of the event, or within 12 months of becoming aware of the problem. We may still consider a complaint made after that time, where there is a good reason it could not be raised sooner.
You may complain on behalf of another person. We will need their consent before we can discuss their care with you — usually in writing, although we can record and confirm spoken consent ourselves.
If the patient cannot give consent themselves — for example a child, someone who lacks the capacity to consent, or someone who has died — please contact us and we will explain what is required instead.
You do not have to bring a complaint to the practice. These routes are open to you instead. The choice is yours, and we will not seek to influence it.
The ICB, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, and the Information Commissioner’s Office.
The NHS organisation that commissions our services. Please use one route or the other, and not both at the same time.
0117 900 2655
0800 073 0907 freephone
bnssg.customerservice@nhs.net
Customer Services Team, NHS Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire ICB, Floor 2 North Wing, 100 Temple Street, Bristol BS1 6AG
The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman investigates complaints about the NHS in England independently of us and of the NHS, and is the final stage of the NHS complaints process. The Care Quality Commission cannot consider an individual complaint, so it is not an alternative.
A breach of confidentiality, information shared without your consent, or a refused request to see your records. You may complain to us in the usual way, and you may also complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office at any point — you do not have to wait for our investigation to conclude. For complaints of this kind the Information Commissioner, not the Ombudsman, is the next step after our response.
Free and confidential help is available from an NHS complaints advocate. Advocates are independent of the practice and of the NHS. An advocate can explain how the process works, help you write letters, and accompany you to meetings.
The NHS complaints advocacy service for North Somerset.
0330 440 9000
info@theadvocacypeople.org.uk
Text PEOPLE to 80800
theadvocacypeople.org.uk
The independent patient champion for the area, which can also provide support.
01275 244238
contact@healthwatchnorthsomerset.co.uk
healthwatchnorthsomerset.co.uk