Complaints
Complaints and concerns
If you have a concern about your care, or the care of a relative, we want to hear about it. Your feedback – both positive and negative – can help us improve the care we provide for you, your loved ones, and patients who need our services in the future.
Your care will never be affected
We want you to know that your care will never be affected by raising a concern or making a complaint. The record of your complaint is stored on a secure computer system, completely separate from your care records.
We’re listening
We want to fix anything that is wrong straight away. Your first step is to raise your concern with a senior member of the team:
- Talk to the nurse, therapist or health professional in charge of your ward or department
- If you do not think your concerns have been dealt with, speak to the area matron or manager
Staff in your area will be able to introduce you, or you can get their contact details from our Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) or switchboard.
Advocacy
If you need help making a complaint or being heard, please contact the advocacy company for your local area.
For Havering Residents, please contact Advocacy – Havering Integrated Advocacy Service.
For residents of Barking, Dagenham and Redbridge please contact the Independent Health Complaints Advocacy Service (IHCAS).
Contact us
We understand that sometimes you’d like to raise your concerns in writing, especially if you feel you were unable to talk about your experience face-to-face.
You can write to
Complaints Department
First Floor Neutral Zone
Trust Headquarters
Queen's Hospital
Rom Valley Way
Romford
RM7 0AG
Or fill in our complaints form online
Email: bhrut.complaints@nhs.net
You can also call our complaints team on 01708 435 032, from 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday.
Things to remember
- Please tell us as soon as something happens, or as soon as you’re aware that something has happened – a complaint should be made within 12 months of that date.
- Give as much information as possible, including your name, address and hospital number.
- To help us understand what happened, you can use headings, numbered lists or bullet points. Ordering the events as they happened will also help us in our investigation.
The complaints process can’t look into:
- disciplinary issues (for example, termination of contracts, striking off health professionals or suspension of registration).
- private healthcare providers, unless it was funded by the NHS.
The complaints process
If you lodge a complaint, we investigate what happened and why. If there are delays to the proceedings, we’ll always keep you updated.
- We will acknowledge your complaint within three working days, then we’ll contact you to agree the main points for investigation.
- Once the investigation is complete, we’ll provide you with a written response explaining the outcome and our conclusion. If necessary, we’ll outline any steps we’ve taken to stop the event (or something similar) from happening again and when we expect those steps to be in place.
What to do next
If you’re not happy with your response, you can request an independent review of your complaint. Visit the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) for more information.