Patients' help - Handling complaints - What will the GMC do when it receives my complaint?

We review all complaints carefully to see if there are issues that we need to investigate.

In some cases, it will be clear from the start that it is not appropriate for us to investigate – for example, because

• it is not about a doctor, or
• because the case clearly falls outside our criteria for taking action against a doctor.

If we decide that the issues raised in your complaint do not raise serious concerns about a doctor’s fitness to practise, we will still write to the doctor’s employers to let them know about it.

If the doctor is employed within the NHS, we let the employer take what action they consider appropriate under their local procedures and ask them to report back to us if there are matters that may require us to take action to protect patients.

If the doctor works as a locum, or in a private setting, we will ask the doctor’s employer whether they know of any other concerns about the doctor, before we decide whether we can conclude the case or whether we need to carry out other enquiries.

How long will it take for the GMC to consider my complaint?

We appreciate that making a complaint can be stressful, so we will try to consider your complaint as quickly as we can. We aim to send you a reply, or progress report, within two weeks of receiving your complaint. If we decide to investigate your complaint, then the time taken to reach a final decision will depend on a number of factors:

• The amount of evidence required
• The complexity of a case
• Whether or not a case is referred to a fitness to practise panel.

The investigation officer dealing with your complaint will keep you informed of the progress of your complaint.

Our Fitness to Practise service targets are published annually and can be found in our Annual Report for 2010 (pdf).

What next?

Read about another stage of the GMC’s process for handling complaints, or use the menu to go to another section.