Raising a complaint with NHS - who should investigate?
Discussion
Anyone have any experience of this?
My FiL passed away last summer, and whilst it may not have saved him, his care in hospital in his last few days was far from ideal, and way beyond anything can be excused with the usual, perhaps undeniable, excuse of lack of resource.
Anyway, my MiL has complained, and has received a response asking whether she is content for the hospital to investigate, or whether she would prefer it to be handled by a higher complaints board, which appears to be a regional body. MiL, being of advanced years and requiring my support has asked me what she should do. My limited knowledge of the process can suggest pros and cons for both options, so not really sure.
Anybody have any experience of this?
My FiL passed away last summer, and whilst it may not have saved him, his care in hospital in his last few days was far from ideal, and way beyond anything can be excused with the usual, perhaps undeniable, excuse of lack of resource.
Anyway, my MiL has complained, and has received a response asking whether she is content for the hospital to investigate, or whether she would prefer it to be handled by a higher complaints board, which appears to be a regional body. MiL, being of advanced years and requiring my support has asked me what she should do. My limited knowledge of the process can suggest pros and cons for both options, so not really sure.
Anybody have any experience of this?
Sorry to hear about the loss of your father in law, my condolences.
Investigations will be carried out by an independent clinician or investigating officer. Usually from another directorate or department. They will have sight of all the records, can request statements from involved parties (including the complainant) and then come to a decision. They also have the option of instigating disciplinary procedures and referral to the appropriate regulatory bodies if it is deemed serious enough.
The outcome of the initial decision (and the reasons) will be communicated with you. The outcome of internal disciplinary procedures will likely remain confidential other than "appropriate disciplinary measures have been taken". The referral to the regulatory boards is confidential, the hearing outcomes if it proceeds that far are published by the regulatory bodies.
SD.
Investigations will be carried out by an independent clinician or investigating officer. Usually from another directorate or department. They will have sight of all the records, can request statements from involved parties (including the complainant) and then come to a decision. They also have the option of instigating disciplinary procedures and referral to the appropriate regulatory bodies if it is deemed serious enough.
The outcome of the initial decision (and the reasons) will be communicated with you. The outcome of internal disciplinary procedures will likely remain confidential other than "appropriate disciplinary measures have been taken". The referral to the regulatory boards is confidential, the hearing outcomes if it proceeds that far are published by the regulatory bodies.
SD.
I have some experience of this. When my mother passed in 2014 we complained. Long story short, she broke her hip, which was fixed satisfactorily, but rather than wait for a suitable place in a convalescent home, after some disagreement, they sent her home. As she was being assisted up the path to the front door, her legs started to give way and she collapsed. She had shattered both femurs. The hospital referred to this as a, “failed discharge!” She died a couple of weeks later.
We put a complaint in, but to be honest, the hospital weren’t especially cooperative. They wouldn’t give us electronic copies of her records and insisted that we paid over £100 for photocopies.
When we were contacted by the coroner, the hospital maintained that an inquest wasn’t necessary. Fortunately, the coroner disagreed. At the inquest, they had a full legal team, questioning virtually everything that we brought up. As a family, we couldn’t afford legal representation, so the burden of it fell on me. In the end the coroner gave a narrative verdict, which the hospital objected to, but fortunately, the coroner held firm. We were told that this would enable us to take further action to try to get compensation, but it was never about that for us.
If you can afford to go to a solicitor, there are a few specialists out there, but they are expensive. Also, if the death is reasonably recent, you may get a coroner who is interested. As a long shot, you could try the hospital PALS organisation, if they have one.
I hope you get the result you want OP, but be prepared for a long haul and, if your hospital is anything like ours, you will need to push all the way to get any cooperation for your complaint. Good luck.
We put a complaint in, but to be honest, the hospital weren’t especially cooperative. They wouldn’t give us electronic copies of her records and insisted that we paid over £100 for photocopies.
When we were contacted by the coroner, the hospital maintained that an inquest wasn’t necessary. Fortunately, the coroner disagreed. At the inquest, they had a full legal team, questioning virtually everything that we brought up. As a family, we couldn’t afford legal representation, so the burden of it fell on me. In the end the coroner gave a narrative verdict, which the hospital objected to, but fortunately, the coroner held firm. We were told that this would enable us to take further action to try to get compensation, but it was never about that for us.
If you can afford to go to a solicitor, there are a few specialists out there, but they are expensive. Also, if the death is reasonably recent, you may get a coroner who is interested. As a long shot, you could try the hospital PALS organisation, if they have one.
I hope you get the result you want OP, but be prepared for a long haul and, if your hospital is anything like ours, you will need to push all the way to get any cooperation for your complaint. Good luck.
shed driver said:
Sorry to hear about the loss of your father in law, my condolences.
Investigations will be carried out by an independent clinician or investigating officer. Usually from another directorate or department. They will have sight of all the records, can request statements from involved parties (including the complainant) and then come to a decision. They also have the option of instigating disciplinary procedures and referral to the appropriate regulatory bodies if it is deemed serious enough.
The outcome of the initial decision (and the reasons) will be communicated with you. The outcome of internal disciplinary procedures will likely remain confidential other than "appropriate disciplinary measures have been taken". The referral to the regulatory boards is confidential, the hearing outcomes if it proceeds that far are published by the regulatory bodies.
SD.
Hi & thanks.Investigations will be carried out by an independent clinician or investigating officer. Usually from another directorate or department. They will have sight of all the records, can request statements from involved parties (including the complainant) and then come to a decision. They also have the option of instigating disciplinary procedures and referral to the appropriate regulatory bodies if it is deemed serious enough.
The outcome of the initial decision (and the reasons) will be communicated with you. The outcome of internal disciplinary procedures will likely remain confidential other than "appropriate disciplinary measures have been taken". The referral to the regulatory boards is confidential, the hearing outcomes if it proceeds that far are published by the regulatory bodies.
SD.
Is that an internal hospital investigation you describe?
Mr.Chips said:
I have some experience of this. When my mother passed in 2014 we complained. Long story short, she broke her hip, which was fixed satisfactorily, but rather than wait for a suitable place in a convalescent home, after some disagreement, they sent her home. As she was being assisted up the path to the front door, her legs started to give way and she collapsed. She had shattered both femurs. The hospital referred to this as a, “failed discharge!” She died a couple of weeks later.
We put a complaint in, but to be honest, the hospital weren’t especially cooperative. They wouldn’t give us electronic copies of her records and insisted that we paid over £100 for photocopies.
When we were contacted by the coroner, the hospital maintained that an inquest wasn’t necessary. Fortunately, the coroner disagreed. At the inquest, they had a full legal team, questioning virtually everything that we brought up. As a family, we couldn’t afford legal representation, so the burden of it fell on me. In the end the coroner gave a narrative verdict, which the hospital objected to, but fortunately, the coroner held firm. We were told that this would enable us to take further action to try to get compensation, but it was never about that for us.
If you can afford to go to a solicitor, there are a few specialists out there, but they are expensive. Also, if the death is reasonably recent, you may get a coroner who is interested. As a long shot, you could try the hospital PALS organisation, if they have one.
I hope you get the result you want OP, but be prepared for a long haul and, if your hospital is anything like ours, you will need to push all the way to get any cooperation for your complaint. Good luck.
Thanks for your response - and crikey!We put a complaint in, but to be honest, the hospital weren’t especially cooperative. They wouldn’t give us electronic copies of her records and insisted that we paid over £100 for photocopies.
When we were contacted by the coroner, the hospital maintained that an inquest wasn’t necessary. Fortunately, the coroner disagreed. At the inquest, they had a full legal team, questioning virtually everything that we brought up. As a family, we couldn’t afford legal representation, so the burden of it fell on me. In the end the coroner gave a narrative verdict, which the hospital objected to, but fortunately, the coroner held firm. We were told that this would enable us to take further action to try to get compensation, but it was never about that for us.
If you can afford to go to a solicitor, there are a few specialists out there, but they are expensive. Also, if the death is reasonably recent, you may get a coroner who is interested. As a long shot, you could try the hospital PALS organisation, if they have one.
I hope you get the result you want OP, but be prepared for a long haul and, if your hospital is anything like ours, you will need to push all the way to get any cooperation for your complaint. Good luck.
Like with you and yours, this isn't about compensation or anything other than the fact they (hospital) could clearly have done a lot better, and MiL (and we) believes if nobody points out the failings, they are unlikely to be addressed.
Mr.Chips said:
I have some experience of this. When my mother passed in 2014 we complained. Long story short, she broke her hip, which was fixed satisfactorily, but rather than wait for a suitable place in a convalescent home, after some disagreement, they sent her home. As she was being assisted up the path to the front door, her legs started to give way and she collapsed. She had shattered both femurs. The hospital referred to this as a, “failed discharge!” She died a couple of weeks later.
We put a complaint in, but to be honest, the hospital weren’t especially cooperative. They wouldn’t give us electronic copies of her records and insisted that we paid over £100 for photocopies.
When we were contacted by the coroner, the hospital maintained that an inquest wasn’t necessary. Fortunately, the coroner disagreed. At the inquest, they had a full legal team, questioning virtually everything that we brought up. As a family, we couldn’t afford legal representation, so the burden of it fell on me. In the end the coroner gave a narrative verdict, which the hospital objected to, but fortunately, the coroner held firm. We were told that this would enable us to take further action to try to get compensation, but it was never about that for us.
If you can afford to go to a solicitor, there are a few specialists out there, but they are expensive. Also, if the death is reasonably recent, you may get a coroner who is interested. As a long shot, you could try the hospital PALS organisation, if they have one.
I hope you get the result you want OP, but be prepared for a long haul and, if your hospital is anything like ours, you will need to push all the way to get any cooperation for your complaint. Good luck.
That sounds like a horrible experience, for what its worth my job these days is speaking to families and the coroner (with or without legal teams). For me both personally and the organisation I work for, solicitors shouldn’t have any impact on anything. Things do go wrong in hospitals, everyone is human, every human makes mistakes, resources are always constrained, unexpected things happen, but its about trying to learn from what goes wrong, and putting systems/processes in place to prevent the same thing happening again. We put a complaint in, but to be honest, the hospital weren’t especially cooperative. They wouldn’t give us electronic copies of her records and insisted that we paid over £100 for photocopies.
When we were contacted by the coroner, the hospital maintained that an inquest wasn’t necessary. Fortunately, the coroner disagreed. At the inquest, they had a full legal team, questioning virtually everything that we brought up. As a family, we couldn’t afford legal representation, so the burden of it fell on me. In the end the coroner gave a narrative verdict, which the hospital objected to, but fortunately, the coroner held firm. We were told that this would enable us to take further action to try to get compensation, but it was never about that for us.
If you can afford to go to a solicitor, there are a few specialists out there, but they are expensive. Also, if the death is reasonably recent, you may get a coroner who is interested. As a long shot, you could try the hospital PALS organisation, if they have one.
I hope you get the result you want OP, but be prepared for a long haul and, if your hospital is anything like ours, you will need to push all the way to get any cooperation for your complaint. Good luck.
shed driver said:
Yes it is. I'm not too sure of the current process with an external inquiry, especially if you have instructed legal action.
SD.
No individual private organisations can carry out any kind of ‘external inquiry’, I’m not aware of any legal mandate that enables any private legal team to ‘investigate’ any NHS organisation. External government agencies can carry out reviews, police lead investigations isn’t uncommon, but I’m not sure clear on the police remit on starting investigations. However there is a big difference between a police investigation and prosecution. SD.
I’m not sure what ‘regional board’ is been suggested in the original post, at most it might the local Integrated Care Board, different ICBs have different process for regional oversight of trusts, but all of the processes should be available on public facing websites/portals.
The coroner has the power refer to other agencies if there is enough concern raised, but this isn’t a common outcome. There are plenty of medical litigation teams around, however their aims are often not what most people want - compensation is very different from changes in process/policies. Litigation cases are often handled by NHS trusts in a totally different process to actual complaints, may sound odd, but once legal teams are involved communication often becomes more difficult/challenging between all parties, especially if the high courts get involved.
Hope the OP can get the answer to questions they are asking. Another route is the Parliamentary Ombudsman process, which in my experience is very fair, and independent of the litigation process.
https://www.ombudsman.org.uk/#:~:text=We%20make%20...
Edited by gangzoom on Thursday 22 February 08:31
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