WESTDALE DENTAL COMPLAINTS POLICY

It is our aim to always have satisfied patients, to meet your expectations of care and service and to resolve any complaints as efficiently, effectively and politely as possible.  We take complaints very seriously, we investigate them in a full and fair way and take great care to protect your confidentiality.  We learn from complaints to improve our care and service and we will never discriminate against patients who have made a complaint.

If you are not entirely satisfied with any aspect of our care or service please let us know as soon as possible to allow us to address your concerns promptly.

• The complaints manager and person responsible for dealing with any complaint about the service which we provide is our practice manager Ann-Marie Elwood. In her absence another senior member of the team will be available.
• If the complaints manager is unavailable, we will take brief details about the complaint and arrange a time when they are next available. We will keep comprehensive and confidential records of your complaint which will be stored securely and be accessible only by those who need to know about your complaint.
• We will acknowledge your complaint in writing within 3 working days and we will aim to provide a full response in writing within 20 working days. If the complaints investigation takes longer than anticipated we will keep you informed of the reason for the delay and the proposed date it will be completed.
• When the investigation has been completed, you will be informed of its outcome in writing and be invited to discuss it further.
• If you do not feel you can raise a complaint about your NHS treatment directly with us, you can address your complaint directly to NHS England, Customer Contact Centre, PO Box 16738, Redditch, B97 9PT  Telephone: 0300 311 22 33 or email: england.contactus@nhs.net with ‘For the attention of the complaints team’ in the subject line

We regularly analyse patient complaints to learn from them and to improve our services. That’s why we always welcome your feedback, comments, suggestions and complaints. If you are dissatisfied with our response to a complaint you may wish to take it further, please see the contacts below.

• For complaints about NHS dental treatment: The Parliamentary Health Ombudsman (England): by calling 0345 015 4033 or visiting www.ombudsman.org.uk
• For complaints about private dental treatments you can contact the GDC private dental complaints service within 12 months of the treatment or within 12 months of becoming aware of the issue by calling 020 8253 0800 or visiting www.dentalcomplaints.org.uk

You can also contact

• The General Dental Council who is responsible for regulating all dental professionals. You can complain using their online form at www.gdc-uk.org, contact them on information@gdc-org.uk or by calling 020 7167 6000.
• The Care Quality Commission (CQC) who regulates private and NHS dental care services in England by calling 03000 616161. They can take action against a service provider that is not meeting their standards