Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS)
As a patient, relative, carer, friend of a patient or any other member of the public, you may have questions about the services we provide and may need someone to turn to for on-the-spot help and advice. This is where Patient Services can help.
Patient Services listen to your concerns and suggestions and will treat all information confidentially.
PALS provides help in many ways. For example, it can:- help you with health-related questions
- help resolve concerns or problems when you're using the NHS
- tell you how to get more involved in your own healthcare
PALS can give you information about:- the NHS
- the NHS complaints procedure, including how to get independent help if you want to make a complaint
- support groups outside the NHS
PALS also helps to improve the NHS by listening to your concerns and suggestions.
Complaints
You can make a complaint by arranging to speak to your Practice Manager who will provide you with a written account of your concerns or you can write to your GP practice. Your Practice Manager will be able to help you to resolve your issues that you are unhappy about.
All NHS organisations follow the Local Authority Social Service and National Health Service Complaints (England) Regulations 2009.
Your complaint should be acknowledged by the GP Practice either verbally or in writing within 3 working days.
As part of this acknowledgment you should be informed about the length of time it will take to investigate your complaint. You should also discuss an agreeable date that you will receive your complaint response, either verbally or in writing. During the investigation you will be kept up to date with the progress of your complaint.
If you do not want to make your complaint directly to your GP practice, you can instead make a complaint to the NHS England contact centre.
Write to: PO Box 16738, Redditch, B97 9PT
Telephone: 0300 311 22 33
Email: england.contactus@nhs.net
Support to help you make a complaint
If you would like free advice to help you make a complaint about the NHS, the Independent Complaints Advocacy service can support you.
Write to: Gaddum Centre, 6 Great Jackson Street, Manchester, M15 4AX
Telephone: 0161 214 3904 / Email: advocacy@gaddum.co.uk
www.manchesteradvocacyhub.co.uk
If an interpreter is needed to support you through a complaint, your GP practice will arrange this for you.
What to do if you are not satisfied with your complaint response?
If you have complained directly to your GP practice and you are unhappy with the response you receive, you should contact the Practice Manager to discuss the areas of the complaint you remain unhappy with.
Within the practice response letter, information will be provided to you about your right to ask the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) to review your complaint.
PHSO Customer Helpline: 0345 015 4033 from 8:30am to 5:30pm, Monday to Friday, except bank holidays. Calls are charged at local or national rates.
Text (call back) service: 07624 813 005, with your name and mobile number.
Visit: https://www.ombudsman.org.uk