Patients Complaints Policy

It is my 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. I take complaints very seriously, I investigate them in a full and fair way and take great care to protect your confidentiality. I learn from complaints to improve my care and service. I will never discriminate against patients who have made a complaint. 

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

Louise Hand is the Complaints Manager and will be your personal contact to assist you with any of your concerns. If your verbal complaint is not resolved to your satisfaction within 24 hours or if you complain in writing, the Complaints Manager will acknowledge it in writing within 3 working days and will aim to provide a full response in writing within 10 days or agree with you a time frame. 

If the Complaints Manager is unavailable, I will take brief details about the complaint and will arrange for a meeting when the person is next available. If I cannot arrange this within a reasonable period of time or if you do not wish to wait for her return the Orthodontist or a Therapist will deputies in her absence. 

I will keep comprehensive and confidential records of your complaint, which will be stored securely and only be accessible only by those who need to know about your complaint. 

If the complaint investigation takes longer than anticipated the Complaints Manager will keep you informed of the reason for the delay, the progress of the investigation and the proposed date it will be completed. 

When the investigation has been completed, you will be informed of its outcome in writing and if necessary or if you wish, invited to a meeting to discuss the results and any practical solutions that I can offer to you. These solutions could include replacing treatment, refunding fees paid, referring you for specialist treatments or other solutions that meet your needs and resolve the complaint. 

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

If you do not feel you can raise a complaint about your NHS service directly with us, you can address your complaint directly to NHS England at england.contactus@nhs.net with ‘For the attention of the complaints team’ in the subject line or write to NHS England PO Box 16738 Redditch B97 9PT or call 0300 311 2233. Please note if you have contacted the practice for resolution then please wait for us to resolve the incident, do not contact NHS England, as at this stage it is us or them. 

If you are unhappy about the way I have responded to your NHS complaint and there was no resolution, you can contact the Parliamentary Health Ombudsman (England): by calling 0345 015 4033 or visiting www.ombudsman.org.uk 

If you feel you need help with your complaint the NHS Complaints Advocacy Service is a free and independent service that can help you make a complaint about a National Health Service (NHS). Most of us use the NHS at some point in my lives and many of us use them quite regularly. The NHS work hard to make sure that people are satisfied with their services and receive good quality treatment. But things can go wrong. You may want to complain about a service you have received from the NHS, or you might want to complain on someone else’s behalf. There are different ways to do this. http://nhscomplaintsadvocacy.org Call to get help 0300 330 5454.

For private dental treatment the quickest and simplest way to resolve the problem is to contact the practice who most probably can resolve your concerns. If an informal approach does not resolve your concerns ask for a copy of the complaints procedure. 

If you have already formally approached the practice and the problem is unresolved you can contact the GDC private dental complaints service(DCS) within 12 months of the treatment or within 12 months of becoming aware of the issue by calling 020 8253 0800 or visiting https://dcs.gdc-uk.org/ 

The DCS provides a free and impartial service to help private dental patients and dental professionals settle complaints about private dental care fairly and efficiently.  

If you have safety concerns about the Orthodontist or practice 

You can also contact 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. They do not investigate individual complaints. 

If the problem is so serious that you think the dental professional could be a risk to other patients, you should contact the General Dental Council (GDC) which 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 GDC does not get involved in complaints that are being managed locally. It does not resolve complaints or award compensation.