Tickhill Dental & Implant Centre is committed to providing a high quality, patient-focused service. Complaints and comments from patients are taken very seriously, as we want every patient to feel satisfied with the services we provide. The practice has a procedure for dealing with complaints, to ensure that every complaint is handled fairly and transparently. We will use the information received to learn and improve. When handling complaints, the practice is committed to being fair to staff while seeking to resolve complaints promptly and courteously.

Our aim is to react to complaints in the way in which we would want our complaint about a service to be handled. We learn from every mistake that we make and we respond to patients’ concerns in a caring and sensitive way.

All complaints will be dealt with by the practice or NHS England in the first instance. If a complainant is dissatisfied with the response they receive, they then have the right to take their complaint to the Ombudsman for independent review.

Procedure

• Complaints will be accepted from:
  • a patient
  • a person acting on behalf of a patient with the patient’s consent
  • a person acting on behalf of a patient where consent is not required.

• Complaints may be made:
  • verbally in person
  • verbally over the telephone
  • by e-mail
  • by letter.

• Complaints should be made within 12 months of the event that gave rise to the complaint, or within 12 months of the complainant becoming aware of it. Where a person could not reasonably have complained within this timescale, the practice may still consider the complaint.

• The person responsible for dealing with any complaint about the service which we provide is Neil Andrew Stefan Aylott, the Practice Complaints Manager.

• The person ensuring that the complaints procedure is properly followed and checking that, following a successful complaint changes are brought into place where necessary is Mr. Neil Andrew Stefan Aylott, the Responsible Person.

• When a person raises a concern or complaint in the first instance, members of the team should:
  • Respond positively to the person
  • Resolve the problem there and then if possible
  • Explain that the practice has a procedure for handling complaints
  • Ask the person if they wish to make a complaint using the practice procedure

• If the person does want to use the complaints procedure, the team member should:
  • Explain the procedure
  • Take a note of the details of the complaint
  • Check that the person is happy to make the complaint verbally or whether they wish to put it in writing
  • Pass the details of the complaint to the Complaints Manger

• If a patient complains on the telephone or at the reception desk, we will listen to their complaint and offer to refer him or her to the Complaints Manager immediately. If the Complaints Manager is not available at the time, then the patient will be told when they will be able to talk to the Complaints Manager and arrangements will be made for this to happen. The member of staff will make a written record of your complaint and provide the patient with a copy as well as passing it on to the Complaints Manager. If we cannot arrange this within a reasonable period or if the patient does not wish to wait to discuss the matter, arrangements will be made for someone else to deal with it.

• If the patient complains in writing or by e-mail it will be passed on immediately to the Complaints Manager.

• When a person complains on behalf of a patient, before proceeding to investigate the complaint, the complaints manager will:
  • Verify the person’s identity
  • Verify that the person has the patient’s written consent

• If a complaint is about any aspect of clinical care or associated charges it will normally be referred to the dentist concerned, unless the patient does not want this to happen.

• We will acknowledge the patient’s complaint in writing and enclose a copy of this code of practice as soon as possible, normally within three working days. We will offer to discuss the complaint at a time agreed with the patient, asking how the patient would like to be kept informed of developments, for example, by telephone, face to face meetings, letters or e-mail. We will inform the patient about how the complaint will be handled and the likely time that the investigation will take to be completed. If the patient does not wish to discuss the complaint, we will still inform them of the expected timescale for completing the process.

• We will seek to investigate the complaint speedily and efficiently and we will keep the patient regularly informed, as far a reasonably practicable, as to the progress of the investigation. Investigations will normally be completed within six months.

• The complaints manager will investigate the complaint. He may:
  • Speak with staff involved
  • Review any systems and processes involved
  • Advise the clinician on the appropriate response to the complaint
  • Advise the clinician on any changes required to working practices or systems
  • Discuss the response with involved staff before contacting the complainant

• When we have completed our investigation, we will provide the patient with a full written report. The report will include an explanation of how the compliant has been considered, the conclusions reached in respect of each specific part of the complaint, details of any necessary remedial action and whether the practice is satisfied with any action it has already taken or will be taking as a result of the complaint.

• Proper and comprehensive records are kept of any complaint received, response published, as well as any actions taken to improve services as a consequence of a complaint.

• If patients are not satisfied with the result of our procedure and response then a complaint may be referred to:

For NHS Patients:

NHS England (NHS treatment)

Email:                     england.contactus@nhs.net
Contact number:  0300 311 2233
Postal address:     NHS England
PO Box 16738
REDDITCH
B97 9PT

or

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (NHS treatment) 

Website:                  http://www.ombudsman.org.uk
Contact number:   0345 015 4033
Postal address:      Millbank Tower
Millbank
London
SW1P 4QP 

For Private Patients: 

The Dental Complaints Service (for complaints about private treatment)

E-mail:                         info@dentalcomplaints.org.uk
Contact number:       020 8253 0800
Postal address:          Dental Complaints Service
37 Wimpole Street
London
W1G 8DQ