Suggestions & Complaints

If you have any comments, suggestions or complaints regarding the service that you receive from the surgery, please let us know.

Complaints can often be sorted out easily and quickly at the time they arise and with the person concerned. If your problem can’t be addressed in this way please contact our Partnership Manager, Alan Wiseman, either in person or by writing to him here at the practice.

All complaints are registered and investigated. We will issue an acknowledgement within 2 working days that we have received your complaint and we aim to have looked into the matter within 10 working days. At the end of this process we will offer you an explanation or arrange a meeting with the person(s) involved.

Tilehurst Surgery conforms to the NHS requirement of having in place a Complaints Procedure that is comprehensive, thorough and sympathetic.

Upon receipt of a written clinical complaint you will receive an acknowledgement from a member of the administrative staff within 48 hours and a letter from the designated complaints partner at Tilehurst Surgery, currently Dr. Boulos, within 7 days outlining the plan of action and proposals to deal with your complaint.

An initial interview would be offered to explain the nature of the grievance and a meeting is convened with the clinician involved and this is normally held at Tilehurst Surgery at 7.30 p.m. on a Monday evening. On that occasion the in-house records are fully displayed for inspection by the patient or their relatives upon consent of the patient. This is known as Stage 1 or in-house procedure.

Should the matter not be resolved to your satisfaction by the end of that stage you will be directed by the Complaints Partner to the next stage in the procedure which is Stage 2 and that is to be invoked within 28 days of receiving a letter from the Complaints Partner closing Stage 1. The letter will explain to you how to contact the Reading Primary Care Trust who will decide whether to convene an Independent Review Panel or alternatively appointment a conciliator to take the in-house procedure one step further. Failure to resolve the concerns at this stage would entitle the complainant to contact the Healthcare Commission (address below). This is a body, which is independent of the NHS and the Government.

Stage 3 would be to approach the NHS Ombudsman (address below) having failed to be satisfied with Stages 1 and 2 to that point and subsequently it would be a matter for the courts should the grievance still not be settled.

All doctors at Tilehurst Surgery strive to practice to the highest professional degree and we all appreciate the stress and trauma of making a complaint, but we would encourage our patients to air their views should they be dissatisfied with our service.  By taking the time and trouble to do so we can hopefully improve our services further still. You will be assured of a prompt, constructive and honest response, which will include an explanation on what has happened, and where appropriate, an apology. You are strongly assured that the complaint will not prejudice the care or treatment we provide or arrange for you or your family. The doctors are under duty to co-operate fully with any formal enquiry regarding the treatment of any of our patients and with any complaints procedure, which applies to their work, and by doing so we comply with the General Medical Council Regulations (can be viewed on the GMC website www.gmc-uk.org)

Addresses:-

Healthcare Commission
FREEPOST NAT 18958
Complaints Investigation Team
Manchester
M1 9XZ
Tel: 0845 601 3012
Fax: 020 7448 9180
Email: complaints@healthcarecommission.org.uk  

The Health Service Ombudsman for England
Millbank Tower
Millbank
London
SW1 4QP
Tel: 0345 015 4033
Fax: 020 7217 4940
Email: enquiries@ombudsman.gsi.gov.uk
Website: www.ombudsman.org.uk  

Please note:

• These procedures can not deal with matters of legal liability or compensation
• We are unable to release confidential information regarding a patient to you if you are making a complaint on another’s behalf

The staff here at the surgery work very hard to ensure the high quality of care the surgery provides, praise where it’s due can make all the difference and we would like to hear any positive comments you have!

Our responsibilities are to:

• Treat you with courtesy and respect at all times
• Ensure confidentiality within the practice team
• Provide the best possible service and comply with national standards
• Give an explanation if you have to wait for a prolonged period before your appointment or offer and alternative time for you to be seen
• Provide repeat prescriptions promptly
• Provide appropriate health checks
• Help you to achieve a healthy lifestyle
• Provide emergency care when you need it
• Give you information about your health, treatment or illness
• Arrange referral to a consultant when agreed between you and your GP
• Provide access to your medical records subject to limitations in the law
• Allow you to choose whether or not to take part in medical training
• Listen to your comments and suggestions regarding the services offered and continue to develop and improve them

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Your responsibilities are to:

• Treat all staff with courtesy and respect at all times
• Let us know if you change your name, address or telephone number
• Attend appointments promptly or give as much notice as possible of cancellation
• Let reception staff know if a problem is urgent
• Refrain from booking more than one person in per appointment
• Ask for urgent appointments, home visits and out of hours visits only if justified and not for social convenience
• Be patient if your doctor is called out on an emergency during surgery hours
• Try to see the same doctor for an ongoing medical problem
• Volunteer all relevant medical information and follow medical advice given
• Comply with repeat prescription arrangements and ensure that your supplies of medication do not run low, particularly over weekends and holiday periods
• Adopt and maintain a healthy lifestyle

Freedom of Information

The Tilehurst Surgery Partnership Publication Scheme

Introduction

This Publication Scheme is a complete guide to the information routinely made available to the public by The Partners of The Tilehurst Surgery Partnership. It is a description of the information about our General Practitioners (Dr George B Boulos, Dr Ian Barrow, Dr Nikolas H C Markert, Dr Richard P Croft, Dr Christopher R Howlett, Dr Judith Coleman, Dr Anna Magnusson, Dr Lada Jamnicky, Dr Kate Hill, Dr Charlotte Tyler, Dr Elena Griffin, Dr Tanya Baron (Registrar) and Dr Leigh Williams (Registrar)) and Practice which we make publicly available as required by the Freedom of Information Act 2000. It will be reviewed at regular intervals and we will monitor its effectiveness.

How much does it cost?

The publications are all free unless otherwise indicated within each Class. Where information is provided at a cost the charges will be calculated as set out at Section 7.

How is the information made available?

The information within each Class is available in hard copy from Alan Wiseman (Partnership Manager) who will process your request with ten working days.

Your rights to information

·        In addition to accessing the information identified in the Publication Scheme, you are entitled to request information about The Tilehurst Surgery Partnership under the NHS Openness Code 1995.

·        The Freedom of Information Act 2000 recognises that members of the public have the right to know how public services are organised and run, how much they cost and how the decisions are made.

·        From January 1^st 2005 it will oblige The Tilehurst Surgery Partnership to respond to requests about information that it holds, and is recorded in any format and it will create a right of access to that information. These rights are subject to some exemptions that have to be taken into consideration before deciding what information it can release.

·        New environmental information regulations may be introduced as early as 2003. These will enable similar access to environmental information as under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.    

·        Under the Data Protection Act 1998, you are also entitled to access your clinical records or any other personal information held about you and you can contact Alan Wiseman (Partnership Manager) to do this.

Feedback

If you have any comments about the operation of the Publication Scheme, or how we have dealt with your request for information from the Scheme, please write to: Alan Wiseman at the Surgery.

CLASSES OF INFORMATION

All information at the Tilehurst Surgery Partnership is held, retained and destroyed in accordance with NHS guidelines. Our commitment to publish information excludes any information, which can be legitimately withheld under the exemptions set out in the NHS Openness Code or Freedom of Information Act 2000. Where individual Classes are subject to exemptions, the main reasons are the protection of commercial interests and personal information under the Data Protection Act 1998. This applies to all Classes within the Publication Scheme. The information on this Scheme is grouped into the following broad categories:       

1. Who we are

The NHS was set up just over 50 years ago and is now the largest organisation in Europe. An overview of the NHS as it directly relates to The Tilehurst Surgery Partnership is given below

Department of Health

This is the Government department responsible for delivering fast, fair, convenient and high quality health and social care services to the people of England. It has offices in Leeds and London and is responsible for:

• Management of the overall health and social care system
• Developing policy and managing major change in the NHS
• Regulation and inspection of the NHS (increasingly at arms length through organisations such as the Commission for Health Improvement)
• Intervention, should problems occur in the running of the NHS at any level.

The Department of Health also has four Directors of Health and Social Care who work directly with the NHS and performance manage strategic health authorities.

Strategic health authorities

Strategic Health Authorities are responsible for developing strategies for the local health services and ensuring high-quality performance. They manage the NHS locally and are a key link between the Department of Health and the NHS. They will also ensure that national priorities (such as programmes for improving cancer services) are integrated into local plans.

NHS Direct - 0845 4647

NHS Direct opened in March 1998 and offers fast and free 24-hour advice about personal health care. NHS Direct nurses aim to provide callers with the advice and reassurance they need to care for themselves at home - or, if they need further help, to direct them quickly to the right service at the right time. If a condition is more serious, and in the case of emergencies, nurses can give quick advice on what action the caller should take and if appropriate will call an ambulance. Information and advice about the most common illnesses and a range of treatments is now also available on http://www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk/ online.

Primary care

The first port of call for many people when they develop a health problem is their local doctor, also known as a general practitioner (GP). These doctors usually form a small practice or surgery to serve a particular neighbourhood. GPs are on the frontline of the NHS - the part officially called 'primary care'. Many other health professionals work as part of this frontline team - nurses, health visitors, dentists, opticians, pharmacists and a range of specialist therapists. Every UK citizen has a right to be registered with a local GP and visits to the surgery are free. NHS Direct is also part of primary care.

Primary care trusts

PCTs are the cornerstone of the NHS, responsible for the planning and securing of health services and improving the health of the local population.

For example, PCTs must make sure there are enough GPs to provide for their population and that they are accessible to patients. PCTs must also ensure the provision of other health services including hospitals, dentists, mental health care, Walk-In Centres, NHS Direct, patient transport (including accident and emergency), population screening, pharmacies and opticians. In addition, they are responsible for integrating health and social care so the two systems work together for patients. The Reading PCT is responsible for 32 practices of which the Tilehurst Surgery Partnership is one.

Secondary care

Specialised treatment usually provided by a hospital.

Special health authorities

A health authority that provides health services to the whole population of England not just to a local community, e.g. the National Blood Authority.

Key People at the Practice

Please see our Practice Web site for an up to date list of key people at the Practice.

http://www.tilehurstsurgery.co.uk/

2. Our Services

The range of services and clinics we provide under contract to the NHS can be seen on our Practice web site.

3. Financial and funding information

The Partnership receives money from Reading Primary Care Trust, according to its contract, in exchange for services provided for patients.

The total income received in 2003/2004 was £1,320,014.

4. Regular publications and information for the public

A selection of informative leaflets is always available in the Surgery Waiting Room. We also regularly update our Internet site with topical information.

5. Complaints  

We welcome your ideas on how we can improve our services. If you have any comments, complaints or suggestions regarding the surgery, please contact our Partnership Manager either in person or by writing to him.

6. Our policies and procedures

General policies and procedures in use within the Practice. These include, but are not restricted to, data protection, prescribing and prescription, health and safety.

7. This Publication Scheme

In this class we will publish any changes we make to this Publication Scheme, the criteria on which our information management policies are made and a referral point for all enquires regarding information management generally in the Trust. We will also publish any proposed changes or additions to publications already available.

Cost of Information

For the most part, we will charge you only for hard copies (10 pence per page) or copying onto media (e.g. CD ROM). Some information is available free, but for others there may be a charge. The charges will vary according to how information is made available. Charges are as follows:

a) Via the General Practice/Primary Care Trust Web Site –Free of charge, although any charges for Internet Service provider and personal printing costs would have to be met by the individual

For those without Internet access, a single printout as on the website would be available by post from Alan Wiseman or by personal application at the Practice. A charge of  10 pence per page will be made for this service.

Requests for multiple printouts, or for archived copies of documents that are no longer accessible or available on the web, will attract a charge for the retrieval, photocopy, postage etc. We will let you know the cost and charges that will have to be paid in advance. We will not provide printouts of other organisation’s websites.

b) Leaflets and brochures-free of charge for leaflets or booklets on, for example, services we offer to the public.

c) E-mail-will be free of charge unless it says otherwise

The charges will be reviewed regularly.

Useful Resources

Web sites:

www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk

This is the web site of the Information Commissioner

www.lcd.gov.uk

This is the web site of the Lord Chancellor’s Department

www.foi.nhs.uk

This is the NHS Freedom of Information web site

Primary Care Trust web site

Publications

·        NHS Openness Code-    www.doh.gov.uk/nhsexec/codemain.htm

·        FOI Act 2000   www.legislation.hmso.gov.uk/acts2000/2000036.htm

·        Code of Practice under Section 45 FOI Act 2000 www.lcd.gov.uk

·        Code of Practice under Section 46 FOI Act 2000 www.lcd.gov.uk

·        Statement of Fees and Allowances payable for General Medical Practitioners in England

Copyright

Material available through this Publication Scheme is subject to the General Practice’s copyright unless otherwise indicated. Unless expressly indicated to the contrary, it may be reproduced free of charge in any format or medium provided it is done so accurately in a manner that will not mislead. Where items are re-published or copied to others, you must identify the source and acknowledge copyright status. This permit does not extend to third party material, accessed through the scheme. For HMSO Guidance Notes see www.hmso.gov.uk/guides.htm 

Notice to Patients Regarding Research Data Collection

The staff at this practice record information about you and your health, so that you can receive the right care and treatment.  We need to record this information, together with the details of the care you receive, so that it is available each time we see you.

The information recorded about you may be used for reasons other than your personal care, for example, to help to protect the health of the general public, to plan for the future, to train staff and to carry out medical and other health research.

We are involved in research studies which require access to anonymous information from patients’ notes.  You cannot be identified from these notes as all personal details (name, address, post code, full date of birth) are removed.  Individual patients’ records are added into a much larger anonymous database from many patients across the UK which is used by researchers outside this practice. This data may be anonymously linked to other data, such as hospital data.

If you would like to opt out of this data collection scheme, please let your doctor know and your records will not be collected for use in the anonymous research database.  This will not affect your care in any way.

If anything to do with the research would require that you provide additional information about yourself, you will be contacted by your GP to see if you are willing to take part; you will not be identified in any published results.

EVERYONE WORKING FOR THE NHS HAS A LEGAL DUTY TO KEEP INFORMATION ABOUT YOU CONFIDENTIAL