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Concerns, comments and complaints

Patient and Nurse talking together

We are committed to ensuring that we deliver the highest standards of personalised patient-centred care in a safe and kind environment.

If you have any concerns about the service that you, your family or others have received, please talk to a member of staff as soon as possible. This is often the quickest way of ensuring we can resolve the matter for you.

If you have already left the hospital, or prefer to contact us another way, you also have the following options:

Feedback

If your experience at the hospital wasn’t as expected, we want to know what we could have done differently. You may have some suggestions or ideas you want to share with us, or a compliment about the care you received.

We welcome all feedback as we know this helps us to improve our services and provide the highest standards of care and treatment.

You can email your views to feedback@kingedwardvii.co.uk

If you would prefer, you can speak to our Patient Relationship Manager on 0207 467 4348.

Formal complaints

If you would like to make a formal complaint it is best to do so as soon as possible, once the issue has been identified. Your concern should be raised within six months of the incident, or within six months of becoming aware of the concern. These timeframes may not apply if there are valid reasons for not making the complaint sooner.

Please put your complaint in writing via e-mail to complaints@kingedwardvii.co.uk

Please provide your full name, address, date of birth, contact information and as much detail as possible about the concerns you have. This information is required to progress your complaint investigation.

If you would prefer, you can speak to our Patient Relationship Manager on 0207 467 4348.

Please note, we also have language and British Sign Language interpreters for patients with additional communication needs.

If you prefer to write to us by post, you can send your letter of complaint to:

Head of Governance & Quality
King Edward VII’s Hospital,
5-10 Beaumont Street, Marylebone
London, W1G 6AA

We need to let you know that if you are complaining on behalf of a friend or relative, they will need to complete a consent form to authorise us to disclose information to the person complaining. This is to ensure we comply with data protection legislation. If the patient is unable to consent we will offer further appropriate guidance.

Please be aware that during the complaint investigation, it may be necessary to access the clinical or personal data that we hold for the patient to fully investigate the complaint. We will work hard to ensure your complaint is dealt with promptly and thoroughly.

What happens next?

 

Stage One: A written acknowledgement will be provided to you within three working days of the complaint being received in the hospital. You will be given the name and contact details of a person who will be your point of contact during the complaints process. An opportunity to meet with relevant members of staff to discuss your complaint may be offered. We aim to provide a full response to the complainant within 20 working days. However, where this is not possible because the investigation is still in progress, a letter (or email if this is your preferred communication) will be sent explaining the reason for delay at least every 20 working days.

Stage Two: If you are unhappy about the outcome of your complaint, you can ask for your complaint to be reviewed. This is an internal review process and should be requested within six months of receiving your response from us. The purpose is to conduct an internal review of the complaint management. A full response should be provided to you within 20 working days. Where this is not possible because the investigation is still in progress a letter (or email) of explanation will be sent explaining the reason for delay at least every 20 working days.

Stage Three: If you are dissatisfied with the outcome of the internal review, you are able to escalate the complaint to the Independent Sector Complaints Adjudication Service (ISCAS). This must be requested within six months of the outcome of the internal review. You can request an independent adjudication of your complaint by writing to:

Independent Sector Complaints Adjudication Service
100 St Paul’s Churchyard
London
EC4M 8BU

E-mail: info@iscas.org.uk
Website: http://www.iscas.org.uk
Telephone: 020 7536 6091

Confidentiality

 

Complaints monitoring

All complaints are confidential and recorded on a central database (Vantage) with controlled access. Reports on complaints are reviewed by the Hospital board. These reports do not identify patients or complainants. We use the lessons we learn from complaints to improve services for patients.

Ensuring accessibility

All our complaints information can be provided in large print, easy-read format, or translated into other languages. Please let us know if you require another language or format or additional support.

Caldicott Guardian

The Caldicott Guardian advises on the ethical use of confidential information concerning staff and patients. King Edward VII’s Hospital’s Caldicott Guardian is Emmett Steed-Mundin (Director of Nursing). If you wish to contact the Caldicott Guardian please email: Caldicottguardian@kingedwardvii.co.uk

Resources

Concerns & Complaints