Concerns, Comments, Complaints? (Private patients)

If you are unhappy about the care you have received, please ask to speak to the person in charge of the centre as soon as possible. They may well be able to resolve things straight away. If you have concerns about the care received by someone that you know, other than yourself, we will only be able to communicate with you about any concerns where we have the patients express written consent to do so.

If you are unhappy with the services provided, we want to know about it as soon as possible. We will then investigate the situation so that we can explain, apologise and take positive action where necessary. We may verbally give you feedback or may follow this up in writing with you. It is best to raise your concerns as soon as possible as memories will be fresher and it will be easier to investigate the facts.

If, despite our best efforts, we are unable to resolve your concerns informally, you can make a formal complaint. You can make a complaint, verbally or in writing, for the attention of the Centre Leader. Complaints can also be made by various media including; email, text, online reviews.

If the complaint is about a clinician or independent practitioner, it should be addressed to the Centre Leader, they will liaise with the clinician/independent practitioner to address the concerns.

Please be clear in your correspondence that you wish to make a formal complaint.

You should normally complain within six months of the incident you are concerned about, or within six months of finding out there was something to complain about.

We always handle complaints in confidence, investigate the concerns raised and aim to offer a clear and complete explanation

Should you need assistance in writing a complaint letter advice can be sought from: The Patients Association, Citizen’s Advice Bureau or POhWER. You can also request a copy of the GenesisCare UK Complaints procedure before you make a complaint

You do not need to write a long and very detailed letter, but you should include all the points you wish to see addressed.

GenesisCare UK is a member of Independent Healthcare Sector Complaints Adjudication Services (ISCAS) and as such we follow a 3 stage approach to resolving complaints.

Stage 1 – Local Resolution:

Once we receive the complaint the Centre Leader will acknowledge its receipt within three working days. This letter will contain a summary of the complaint and the key points being investigated known as the ‘heads of complaint’.

The centre leader will offer you an opportunity for a meeting to discuss your concerns and to get clarity on the heads of complaint. If you have concerns you will have difficulty communicating in a meeting and require assistance in understanding what you are being told we will do our best to accommodate. Following the meeting you will receive a written record of what was discussed and what the next steps are.

The Centre Leader will then reply in full, within 20 working days, either by post or email. If the investigation is still going on after 20 days, we will write to explain the delay. All complaints should be resolved within 3 months unless there is a good reason to explain the longer timeframe.

This is unless you have indicated a preference to communicate in another way, e.g. by telephone or you have expressed a choice not to receive these until the investigation is complete.

Any correspondence relating to the complaint sent during this process will be reviewed and answered within 5 working days of receipt.

Our full response will:

• Share our findings with you
• Acknowledge and apologise for any mistakes we have made
• Ensure that action is taken to stop a similar problem happening in the future
• Share with you the actions we are taking when serious failings in services are identified

If you are not happy with the outcome of the stage 1 investigation you have the right to escalate your concerns to stage 2. 

Stage 2 – Referral to the GenesisCare Safety and Quality Team

Stage 2 of our complaints procedure involves an internal review of the complaint and investigations, this internal review is conducted by individuals that were not involved in the initial response, and not involved in the subject matter of the complaint and is therefore independent.

The request for further investigation into your concerns should be made within 6 months of you receiving our full and final written response at Stage 1. The Centre Leaders full response letter will explain what to do and where to send your correspondence.

Following receipt of a stage 2 escalation the Head of Quality will acknowledge its receipt within three working days. This letter will contain a summary of the complaint and the key points being investigated known as the ‘heads of complaint’.

The Head of Quality will offer you an opportunity for a meeting to discuss your concerns and to get clarity on the heads of complaint. If you have concerns you will have difficulty communicating in a meeting and require assistance in understanding what you are being told we will do our best to accommodate. Following the meeting you will receive a written record of what was discussed and what the next steps are.

The Head of Quality will then reply in full, within 20 working days, either by post or email. If the investigation is still going on after 20 days, we will write to explain the delay. All complaints should be resolved within 3 months unless there is a good reason to explain the longer timeframe.

This is unless you have indicated a preference to communicate in another way, e.g. by telephone or you have expressed a choice not to receive these until the investigation is complete.

Any correspondence relating to the complaint sent during this process will be reviewed and answered within 5 working days of receipt.

The Safety and Quality Team will review the initial documents and concerns and the outcome of this internal review will be communicated to you in writing. We will also advise you of your right to refer the matter externally if you are not satisfied.

Our full response will:

• Provide a summary of the agreed outstanding heads of complaint and the matters that remain unresolved.
• A summary of the process of the review.
• The findings of the review, including (where appropriate) a summary of the statement or responses provided by those involved.
• A conclusion/ response to the review and clarity on which heads of complaint have been upheld and actions taken.

If you are not happy with the outcome of the stage 2 investigation you have the right to escalate your concerns to stage 3.

Stage 3 - Referral to the Independent Sector Complaints Adjudication Service

The external independent adjudication process is aimed at bringing about a final resolution of the complaint for both parties. Complaints will only be accepted for consideration at Stage 3 after the subscriber has confirmed that Stages 1 and 2 have been completed.

You can find information relating to ISCAS and the stage 3 process on their website: ISCAS – Independent Sector Complaints Adjudication Service (cedr.com)

Alternatively you could write to ISCAS using the address below:

Independent Sector Complaints Adjudication Service

100 St Paul’s Churchyard

London

EC4M 8BU

Will making a complaint affect my care?

As a dedicated healthcare provider, we aim to improve services as a result of the information we receive from complaints. If you make a complaint about the care you or your relative have received, this will not in any way adversely affect any care you receive in the future. Correspondence and records relating to any complaint are not retained in your health records.

What about patient confidentiality?

When we are investigating your complaint, information from your health records may need to be disclosed to those involved. This will only be information relevant to your complaint. If you do not want information from your health records to be disclosed, let us know but do bear in mind that this may affect the extent to which we can investigate your complaint.

What if I don’t want to reveal my identity but still want to complain?

Anonymous concerns received will be logged and investigated insofar as we are able to do so based on the information available but will fall outside the scope of our standard handling process. There will be no opportunity of communicating our responses or advice and support on alternatives available to you in the event that we receive an anonymous complaint. However, the issue will be recorded so as to ensure that trends in complaints are identified as fully as possible.

What if I need assistance and support with understanding how to complain?

We shall provide the assistance identified and requested you may reasonably require to assist with understanding information and guidance and the complaints procedure, for example through advocates, interpreter services, communication aids, explanations of medical phraseology, braille etc.

Notwithstanding the complaints procedure outlined above, you have, in addition, the right to seek independent or legal advice where your complaint might give rise to a clinical negligence claim.

What if my complaint relates to a third parties or another organisation?

If your complaint involves a third party, then we may need to share your details with them. If we do, we will contact you to confirm your consent.