Comments, Suggestions and Complaints

We aim to provide a high standard of service across all our surgeries and we hope you find your visit a pleasant one.

This page explains what to do if you have a suggestion for improving the quality of service or if you would like to make a comment or complaint about the level of service you have received.

Comments and Suggestions

We value your comments and suggestions. We are committed to learning lessons from concerns and use them to review the services we offer and to look at ways of improving services at the surgery, to do that we also need to know what we do well.

All staff are here to help and they will do their best to deal with any of your concerns.

PALS

PALS is a free confidential information service giving on the spot help for patients, their families, carers and staff. They aim to resolve problems and concerns for people using NHS services quickly before they become a major issue.

They can be contacted by telephone on 0800 389 6819 or by email pals@suffolk.nhs.uk

Suffolk Healthwatch

This provides confidential advice and support, helping you to sort out any concerns you may have about the care we provide, guiding you through the different services available from the NHS.

Confidentiality

Please note we have to respect our duty of confidentiality to patients and a patient's consent will be necessary if a complaint is not made by that patient in person.

Complaints Procedure

We try to offer you the best service we can at all times but we understand there may be occasions when you feel this has not happened.

We like to handle complaints ourselves since most arrive from misunderstandings. It is best for all concerned to put things right as quickly as possible. The way a complaint is dealt with depends on its nature. The Practice Manager will ensure that your complaint is reviewed and responded to by the most appropriate Manager and/or Clinician in the Practice.

If you have a concern or wish to make a complaint you can do this in a variety of ways:

• In Person - if you feel comfortable discussing your complaint with a member of staff, please do. Each team also has a Team Leader/Manager who can also help resolve any issues.

  ---

• In Writing - if you would prefer to put your complaint in writing please address this for the attention of: Practice Manager, Hardwicke House Group Practice, Stour Street, Sudbury CO10 2AY or email hwh.sudbury-admin@nhs.net
  
  If you have put your complaint in writing you will receive an acknowledgement within 10 working days which may be a full reply or a letter outlining how your complaint will be dealt with together with the timescales involved. We may telephone you to discuss your complaint, on many occasions this enables an effective way to get to a resolution more quickly.

  ---

• Complaining on behalf of someone else - We comply with the strict rules of medical and personal confidentiality. Please note we are unable to discuss any issue relating to someone else without their express permission which must be in writing. Where a patient is incapable of giving consent due to illness, accident or mental capacity it may still be possible to deal with the complaint if we are given the precise details of the circumstances that prevent this, in a covering letter.

  ---

If you prefer not to raise your complaint with the practice directly, you can contact the Patient Advice and Liaison service at pals@snee.nhs.uk who will then investigate your complaint.

Alternatively, you can write to PALS at:
PALS
Suffolk and North East Essex ICB
Endeavour House, 8 Russell Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP1 2BX

If after contacting the Practice or PALS you are still not satisfied you have the right to approach the Parliamentary & Health Service Ombudsman. Their contact details are:
The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman
Citygate, Mosley Street, Manchester M2 3HQ
Tel: 0345 0154033 Website: www.ombudsman.org.uk