Complaints Flashcards
What are the relevant bodies/guidance/cases relevant to complaints?
- legislation
- Montgomery v NHS Lanarkshire (2015)
- Scottish Apology Act (2016)
- Scottish Government (COVID-19)
- guidance
- SDCEP
- GDC
What does GDC Standard 5.1.6 state about what should be taken from complains?
Complaints can be an opportunity to improve your service. You should analyse any complaints that you have received to help you improve the service you offer and share lesions learnt from complaints with all team members
What is the correct NHS approach to complaints?
- You Said, We Did
- feedback collected
- feedback analysed
- feedback processed
- feedback reported
- impact communicated
What are the possible sources of complains in dentistry?
- colleagues
- dental team
- patients
What are potential ways of risk management in regards to preventing complaints?
- find a practice you like
- build rapport with reception and nurses
- never be too busy to listen
- know referral pathways and waiting times
- build rapport with lab
- have an open door policy
- be prepared with patient information sources
- be realistic with time
- breathe
Who is interested in complaints made against dentists?
- practice principle/dental body corporate
- SPSO/PHSO
- NHS/Denplan/DCS/BSA/PSD
- Claim of clinical negligence
- GDC
How can complains be avoided?
- communicating well
- patients
- colleagues
- dental team
- involve patient in treatment journey
- chose when not to treat
What are possible complaint triggers in practice?
- appointments
- incorrect
- wring dentist
- NHS access
- running late
- treatment failures
- treatment estimates
- complications
- complaint management
If a complaint is made, what is looked at?
- clinical records
- clinical photographs before and after
- patient expectation setting
- signed treatment plan
- clear delineation between NHS & private
What are possible patient motivations to complain?
- explanation
- assurance
- apologies
- refund of fees
What are the possible outcomes of a GDC fitness to practice?
- no action taken
- reprimand issued
- conditions placed on registration
- suspended registration
- removal from register
What is a complaint?
any expression of dissatisfaction by a patient about a dental service or treatment, whether justified or not
What do complaints often focus on?
Wherever a patient has consented to treatment or understood the costs and implication of the risk of failure
What must a patient prove to be successful in a clinical negligence case?
- the dental professional owed them duty of care
- there was a breach of duty
- the breach of duty caused harm
- avoidable harm resulted
How can patient interests be put first?
- effective communication
- recognising patients rights and responsibilities
- giving patients all necessary info
- giving clear information on costs
What are the 3 options in the NHS complaints handling procedure?
- frontline resolution
- investigation
- independent external review
What is frontline resolution?
- for issues that are straightforward and easily resolved requiring little or no investigation
- on the stop apology, explanation or other
- quickly resolve the complaint
- addressed by any member of staff
- can be referred to appropriate point
- details, outcome and action recorded
- service improvement
What is the timescale for frontline resolution?
- 5 working days
What is investigation?
- for issues that have not been resolved at the frontline or that are complex, serious or high risk
- thorough investigation of points raised
- signed by senior management
- service improved
What is the timescale for investigation?
20 working days
What is an independent external review?
- for issues that have not been resolved by the service provider
- complaints thorough investigated by provider
- reviewed by SPSO
- assess for evidence of service failure
What are the different ways in which a patient can make a complaint?
- in writing
- in person
- by telephone
- by email
- online
- someone else complain on their behalf
When can the timescale for frontline resolution be extended?
- exceptional circumstances
- clear and justifiable reason
- maximum 5 working days increased
- agree with complainant
- only if complaint is likely resolved by frontline resolution
What 4 questions should be considered when receiving a complaint?
- what is the complaint?
- what does the complainant want to achieve?
- can it be achieved, or explained why not?
- if it cannot be resolved at this stage, what next
When does a complaint progress to the investigation stage?
- frontline resolution attempted
- customer remains dissatisfied
- customer requests investigation
- customer refuses to take part in frontline resolution
- issues raised are complex and require detailed investigation
- complaint relates to serious, high-risk or high-profile issues
- death or terminal illness
- major delays in providing treatment
- repeated failures to provide a service
- significant and ongoing press interest
- serious risk to organisations operations
When does a complaint progress to a post-investigation review and what are the timescales?
- if a complainant or service provider disagrees with an outcome decision
- 10 working days to request
- recipe of request
- within 5 working days
- decision on progressing with review
- 10 working days
- outcome of post-investigation review
- explains outcome of review
- final decision made
- 20 working days
What organisation carries out post-investigation reviews for NHS dentistry?
- SPSO
- Scottish Public Services Ombudsman
What organisation deals with complaints about private dentistry?
- DCS
- Dental Complaints Service
What is HIS?
Health Improvement Scotland
What can complaints made to HIS relate to?
- quality of care and treatment received
- actions a provider took deemed inadequate
- providers failure to take action
What complains can HIS investigate?
- quality of care or treatment experienced
- care environment of equipment issues
- poor treatment by a member of staff
- operational and procedural issues
- failure to follow appropriate process
- lack of information provision
What are the timescales for the key principles of the HIS complaints procedure?
- receiving and assessing the complaint
- assessment of eligibility
- 1 working day
- acknowledgement
- 5 working days
- assessment of eligibility
- planning for the investigation
- agree with complainant areas to investigate
- investigation
- investigation and response
- 20 working days
- investigation and response
- decision making and reporting
- outcome report to complainant and provider
- publish outcome on website
- follow-up
- 16 weeks after complaint investigation
- if complaint upheld
- 16 weeks after complaint investigation
