Foreword
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As Health Service Ombudsman I see hundreds of complaints from patients and carers every year. These complaints have already been dealt with by the NHS before they come to me, giving my Office a unique overview of the complaints handling process.
Looking through these cases it is clear that many complainants face severe problems in getting a satisfactory response to their complaints from health care providers. Furthermore, the situation remains static as the NHS is not using the valuable information contained in complaints to improve its services and complaint handling processes.
In this report we highlight some of the problems with the current situation such as the fragmentation of complaints systems – within the NHS, the NHS and private health care and between health and social care. This – combined with a failure to focus on patients’ needs, poor leadership and lack of capacity and competence in complaint handling – has led to a system which makes it difficult for patients to have things put right where they have gone wrong.
In laying this report before Parliament - in accordance with Section 14(4)(b) of the Health Service Commissioners Act 1993 – my aim is to look to the future. The timing is right to consider how we can develop a truly patient-focused complaints system. The Department of Health’s decision to issue revised regulations on complaint handling in 2005 - after considering the findings of the Shipman Inquiry’s 5th report - gives us all an opportunity to focus on how we can achieve this.
Health services that are truly responsive to patients will only come about if all health service leaders value feedback from patients - even when that feedback is a complaint.
In this report I call for leadership from the Department of Health and improvements from the Healthcare Commission and others to address key failings in the current system. The Department of Health needs to demonstrate leadership and commitment by creating a core standard for complaints services handling which meets patients' needs and by investing in trained staff who can treat complaints positively and learn from them. The current system focuses on process rather than outcomes and on meeting deadlines rather than delivering a quality service.
The ultimate goal must be to create a modern, responsive, patient-focused complaints handling system. We would be delighted to work with the Department of Health, the Healthcare Commission and other providers of NHS healthcare to help achieve this.
Ann Abraham
Health Service Ombudsman for England
March 2005
