TranslateComplaints
The Complaints and Feedback team is here to listen, in confidence, to any concerns or comments you may have about the care you or someone you care for is receiving. They can provide advice and guidance on the complaints process. If you wish to make a complaint and are not the patient, signed consent will be sought from the patient before the Trust can proceed with your complaint.
The Complaints Team will:
- Listen to comments, concerns and complaints about the care we are providing for you or your family
- Arrange for a manager to contact you to discuss your concerns
- Arrange for your complaint or concern to be investigated and ensure you receive a response.
- Ensure the Trust learns from complaints and concerns, where possible, to provide the best possible care to our patients and service users.
Contact Details
Write to us
You can write to the Complaints team at
Trust Headquarters,
Willerby Hill,
Beverley Road,
Willerby,
HU10 6ED.
Online form
Here you can fill out and submit an online complaint form to us and a member of our team will get back to you within 3 working days.
How we handle complaints
We aim to provide the best possible care for people who use our services, their families and carers. However we recognise that there may be times when you are not satisfied with the service you have received and may wish to make a complaint, have it considered and receive a response from the Trust. We use the information from our investigations of complaints to try to improve the standard of care we provide in order that we might prevent similar problems occurring in the future.
We would like to assure you that raising a concern or a complaint will not prejudice the treatment/care or support provided to you and no record of your complaint will be held on your medical records.
Any concerns/complaints raised about the services provided by this Trust are investigated in accordance Local Authority Social Services and National Health Service Complaints (England) Regulations 2009.
Who can complain?
A complaint can be made by a patient or person affected or likely to be affected by the actions or decisions of the Trust. It is preferable if a complaint if made by the person affected however if this is not possible, a complaint can also be made by someone acting on behalf of the patient or person, with their consent. The complaints department will seek written consent from the patient, and once consent has been received, will initiate the complaints procedure.
What is the time limit for making a complaint?
You should normally complain within 12 months of the event(s) concerned or within 12 months of becoming aware that you have something to complain about. The complaints manager has the discretion to waive this time limit if there are good reasons why you could not complain earlier.
To whom should you complain initially?
The first stage of the NHS complaints procedure is called local resolution and your complaint should be made in the first instance to the Trust.
You can make your complaint by letter, email or verbally. If you wish to make a verbal complaint a member of staff in the complaints department will take a summary of your concerns; this summary will be sent to you with the letter of acknowledgement for you to check that it covers the concerns you have. Staff in the complaints department can also provide you with a form to complete if you would prefer to send your complaint this way.
It is preferable if you could indicate what outcome you are looking for and to include a contact telephone number and email address if possible. If you would like help with making a formal complaint, independent advice and support can be obtained from advocacy services (see below).
What will happen to your complaint?
Once the Trust has received your complaint, you will receive an acknowledgement letter will be sent within three working days. This letter will include the anticipated completion date for the investigation and response into your complaint. A manager will then be asked to carry out an investigation into your concerns. This manager may contact you to discuss your concerns by telephone or it may be that they consider a face to face meeting would be appropriate.
If it is not possible to send the response to you within the identified timescale you will be contacted and an explanation given as to why we cannot meet the timescale and you will be informed when you may expect the letter of response.
What if you are unhappy with the response to your complaint?
You should contact the Trust within one month of the letter of response explaining why you remain dissatisfied and indicate what you want the Trust to do to resolve your complaint. Staff in the complaints department will discuss your outstanding concerns with the appropriate senior manager and agree with you how to take your complaint forward, if this is possible.
Further information on any aspect of the complaints procedure can be obtained from the complaints department.
Independent Advice
Free and confidential advice is available from Cloverleaf Advocacy. If you / the patient lives in either the City of Hull or the East Riding of Yorkshire or North Yorkshire, please contact the Cloverleaf Independent Health Complaints Advocacy Service on 0300 012 4212 or NHSComplaints@cloverleaf-advocacy.co.uk
The Department of Health’s website also has information on the NHS Complaints Procedure on www.dh.gov.uk
The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman
If you are not happy with how we have dealt with your complaint, and would like to take the matter further, you can contact the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman which makes final decisions on unresolved complaints about the NHS in England. It is an independent service which is free for everyone to use. To take your complaint to the Ombudsman visit www.ombudsman.org.uk/make-a-complaint or call 0345 015 4033.
