Get an explanation of what happened with your care, or an apology from those involved
- Summary
- Get an explanation of what happened with your care, or an apology from those involved
- Leave feedback about your care
- Raise a concern about an individual healthcare professional
- Raise a concern about the standard of care from a hospital, doctors’ surgery or clinic
If you have a concern about patient safety or the quality of care in England, there are a number of organisations who can help. In most cases raising your concern locally, where you received your care, is the best place to start.
We would encourage speaking with the doctor, physician associate (PA) or anaesthesia associate (AA) who treated you, about your concerns if you feel comfortable to do so. They will be able to discuss your care and provide an explanation about what happened to you.
They may also provide an apology and outline the steps they will take to make improvements to their service.
Raise a concern about your treatment at a GP practice
If you have a concern about your GP or a PA at your GP practice it’s best to raise this with the practice where they work. The NHS website has pages on making complaints that should be able to help you
Raise a concern about your treatment at a hospital or local service
At most hospitals there’s a patient liaison service, usually known as PALS, which will be able to help you raise a concern about your treatment.
If for any reason you are unable to speak to PALS or you would like to speak to someone regarding services in your community including mental health related services and out of hours service, your local integrated care board will be able to help. They’re responsible for the NHS services in your area.
Concern about your private care
If your treatment was funded by the NHS, you should refer to ‘Raise a concern about your treatment at a hospital or local service’ as outlined above.
If you received your care from a private provider, they will have their own individual complaints process that you can follow. We would encourage, should you feel comfortable in doing so, raising your concern with the practice manager of the hospital or clinic.
In some cases, the hospital, practice or clinic may be part of a wider healthcare group, so you may wish to raise your concern with them.
Still not sure?
You can check if we’re the right people to handle your concern via our concerns tool.