Complaints Procedure

1. Our commitment

AB Pharmacy is committed to providing safe, effective and professional pharmacy services.

We welcome comments, concerns and complaints because they give us an opportunity to:

• resolve problems;
• protect patients from harm;
• improve the quality and safety of our services;
• learn from mistakes and near misses; and
• improve the experience of patients, carers and customers.

We will treat every complaint seriously, fairly, respectfully and confidentially. Making a complaint will not affect the standard of care or service you receive from us.

2. Who can make a complaint?

A complaint may be made by:

• a patient or customer;
• a parent or guardian;
• a carer;
• a person acting on behalf of a patient;
• an authorised representative;
• a care home or healthcare professional; or
• another person affected by our services.

Where a complaint is made on behalf of someone else, we may need to obtain that person’s consent before discussing confidential information.

Where the patient is a child or lacks capacity to give consent, we will consider whether the representative has appropriate authority and whether handling the complaint is in the patient’s best interests.

3. What you can complain about

You may complain about any aspect of our pharmacy services, including:

• the dispensing or supply of a medicine;
• an incorrect, missing, damaged or delayed item;
• prescription processing;
• delivery arrangements;
• packaging or storage of medicines;
• advice provided by pharmacy staff;
• communication with the pharmacy;
• staff conduct or attitude;
• confidentiality or privacy;
• accessibility of our services;
• charges, refunds or payments;
• our website or ordering process;
• a failure to provide an expected service; or
• any concern about patient safety or the quality of care.

4. Immediate safety concerns

Patient safety comes first.

Where a complaint concerns an immediate risk to health, an incorrect medicine, a suspected adverse reaction or another urgent clinical matter, please contact the pharmacy immediately.

If someone is seriously unwell or there is an immediate danger to life, call 999.

For urgent medical advice where the situation is not life-threatening, contact NHS 111.

Do not take a medicine that you believe may be incorrect until you have spoken to a pharmacist or another appropriate healthcare professional.

We will take any immediate action necessary to protect the patient before continuing with the wider complaint investigation.

5. How to make a complaint

You may make a complaint verbally or in writing.

By email

info@abpharmacy.co.uk

Please write “Complaint” in the subject line.

By post

Complaints Manager
AB Pharmacy
20A Turner Road
Edgware
HA8 6AU

By telephone

Telephone: [insert pharmacy telephone number]

Through our website

You may use the contact form at:

www.abpharmacy.co.uk

Please select or state that your message is a complaint.

If you need assistance making a complaint or require information in another format, please contact us. We will make reasonable adjustments where required.

6. Information to include

To help us investigate your complaint, please provide:

• your full name;
• your preferred contact details;
• the name and date of birth of the patient, where relevant;
• your relationship to the patient, if you are complaining on their behalf;
• the date and approximate time of the incident;
• the prescription, order or delivery reference, where available;
• the name of the medicine or service involved;
• the names or descriptions of any staff members involved, if known;
• a clear description of what happened;
• how the matter affected you or the patient;
• any supporting photographs, correspondence or documents; and
• what you would like us to do to resolve the matter.

Please do not send original documents unless we specifically ask you to do so.

You do not need to provide all this information before raising an urgent patient-safety concern.

7. When a complaint should be made

Complaints about NHS pharmaceutical services should normally be made within:

• 12 months of the incident; or
• 12 months from the date on which you first became aware of the matter.

We may consider a complaint made outside this period where there is a good reason for the delay and it is still possible to investigate the matter fairly.

Complaints about private services should also be made as soon as reasonably possible so that records remain available and the matter can be investigated effectively.

8. Informal resolution

Where a verbal complaint can be resolved to your satisfaction promptly, we will try to resolve it immediately.

For an NHS complaint, a verbal complaint that is resolved to the complainant’s satisfaction no later than the next working day may be treated as resolved without using the full formal complaints procedure.

We may still record and review the issue for learning and service-improvement purposes.

You may ask for the matter to be handled as a formal complaint if you are not satisfied with the proposed resolution.

9. Formal complaints

Formal complaints will be overseen by the pharmacy’s Complaints Manager or another appropriately authorised senior person.

The Complaints Manager is responsible for ensuring that:

• the complaint is acknowledged;
• immediate risks are addressed;
• the complaint is investigated fairly;
• relevant records and evidence are reviewed;
• staff involved are given an opportunity to respond;
• confidentiality is maintained;
• the complainant receives a clear response; and
• learning and corrective actions are implemented.

Where the complaint concerns the Complaints Manager, Superintendent Pharmacist or another person who would normally investigate it, the complaint will be allocated to an appropriately independent person.

10. Acknowledging your complaint

We will acknowledge a formal complaint no later than three working days after receiving it.

The acknowledgement may be given verbally or in writing.

At that stage, we will offer to discuss:

• the issues you want us to investigate;
• how the complaint will be handled;
• how you would prefer us to communicate with you;
• whether you require any reasonable adjustments;
• the outcome you are seeking; and
• the period within which we expect to provide our response.

If we cannot contact you to discuss the complaint, we will write to confirm how we propose to investigate it and the anticipated response timescale.

11. How we investigate

The investigation may include:

• reviewing the complaint and supporting evidence;
• reviewing prescriptions, orders, patient medication records and delivery records;
• checking dispensing, checking and supply records;
• reviewing relevant telephone, email or website communications;
• speaking with pharmacy staff involved;
• speaking with couriers, suppliers or service providers where relevant;
• checking stock, storage, packaging or delivery processes;
• reviewing relevant policies, procedures and professional standards;
• considering whether another healthcare provider needs to be involved;
• assessing whether a medication error, data breach, safeguarding concern or other reportable incident occurred; and
• identifying immediate and longer-term corrective action.

The investigation will be proportionate to the seriousness and complexity of the complaint.

We will not investigate the complaint solely to attribute blame. Our priority will be to establish what happened, put matters right where possible and reduce the risk of recurrence.

12. Complaints involving more than one organisation

A complaint may involve another organisation, such as:

• a GP practice;
• a prescriber;
• another pharmacy;
• a care home;
• a delivery provider;
• an NHS organisation; or
• another healthcare provider.

Where this happens, we will explain which parts of the complaint we can investigate.

With your consent, we may:

• forward the relevant part of the complaint to the other organisation;
• cooperate with that organisation;
• agree which organisation will lead the response; or
• provide a coordinated response where appropriate.

We will only share information necessary to investigate the complaint and will comply with patient-confidentiality and data-protection requirements.

13. Response times

We aim to investigate and respond to most complaints within 20 working days.

Some complaints may require longer because they are complex, involve several organisations or require information from an external party.

For NHS complaints, we will agree or explain the anticipated response period when acknowledging the complaint. The statutory procedure allows a maximum period of six months, although we will not delay a response unnecessarily.

If we cannot respond within the agreed period, we will:

• explain the reason for the delay;
• provide an update on progress;
• tell you what remains to be investigated; and
• provide a revised response date.

14. Our final response

Our final response will be clear, balanced and written in plain language.

Where relevant, it will include:

• a summary of the complaint;
• the matters investigated;
• the evidence considered;
• our findings;
• whether the complaint is upheld, partly upheld or not upheld;
• an apology where something went wrong;
• an explanation of what happened;
• any action already taken;
• any further action we intend to take;
• how we will use the complaint to improve our services; and
• information about what you can do if you remain dissatisfied.

The response will normally be signed by the Complaints Manager, Superintendent Pharmacist, pharmacy owner or another authorised senior person.

15. Putting things right

Where something has gone wrong, we will seek to provide an appropriate and proportionate remedy.

This may include:

• an explanation;
• an apology;
• correcting an error;
• supplying a missing or replacement item;
• arranging an urgent pharmacist review;
• refunding an appropriate charge;
• improving communication;
• reviewing or changing a procedure;
• providing additional staff training;
• reviewing staffing, workload or supervision arrangements;
• taking action with a supplier or delivery provider;
• making a referral or notification to another organisation; or
• introducing additional checks to prevent recurrence.

Any clinical or dispensing error will also be managed through the pharmacy’s incident-reporting and patient-safety procedures.

16. Confidentiality

Complaints will be handled confidentially.

Information will only be shared with people who need it to:

• investigate the complaint;
• respond to the complainant;
• protect patient safety;
• comply with legal or regulatory duties; or
• implement learning and improvement.

Complaint records will normally be kept separately from clinical records. Relevant factual information may be added to a patient’s healthcare record where this is necessary for safe and effective care.

We may need the patient’s consent before sharing confidential information with a representative.

There may be exceptional circumstances in which we must disclose information without consent, including where required by law or necessary to protect someone from serious harm.

17. Fair treatment

No patient, customer, representative or member of staff will be treated unfairly for raising a genuine concern or complaint.

We will communicate respectfully and expect complainants to treat our staff in the same way.

We understand that people may be upset or distressed when making a complaint. However, threatening, abusive, discriminatory or persistently unreasonable behaviour may be managed under a separate unreasonable-behaviour policy.

Any restriction on communication will be proportionate and will not prevent a genuine patient-safety concern from being considered.

18. Complaints about NHS pharmacy services

For complaints about an NHS pharmaceutical service, you may complain either:

• directly to AB Pharmacy; or
• to the NHS organisation responsible for commissioning the service.

You should not normally pursue the same complaint through both routes at the same time.

For pharmacy services commissioned in North Central London, you may contact:

NHS North Central London Integrated Care Board
Complaints Team

Email: nclicb.complaints@nhs.net

Telephone: 020 4515 1448

Post:

NHS North Central London Integrated Care Board
Complaints Team
2nd Floor, Laycock PDC
Laycock Street
London
N1 1TH

Current contact details should be checked on the NHS North Central London Integrated Care Board website before submitting a complaint.

19. Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman

If your complaint concerns an NHS service and you remain dissatisfied after the local complaints process has been completed, you may ask the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman to consider it.

Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman

Telephone: 0345 015 4033

Website: www.ombudsman.org.uk

The Ombudsman is independent of the NHS and its service is free.

The Ombudsman will normally expect you to have completed the pharmacy’s or commissioner’s complaints procedure first.

20. Concerns about a pharmacy professional or registered pharmacy

The General Pharmaceutical Council regulates pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and registered pharmacy premises in Great Britain.

The GPhC does not generally resolve ordinary customer-service disputes or award compensation. However, it may consider serious concerns that suggest:

• a risk to patient or public safety;
• serious or repeated professional misconduct;
• dishonesty or fraud;
• serious breaches of confidentiality;
• unsafe pharmacy systems or premises; or
• conduct that could undermine public confidence in pharmacy.

Concerns may be reported through the GPhC website:

www.pharmacyregulation.org/reporting-concerns

General Pharmaceutical Council
One Cabot Square
London
E14 4QJ

Telephone: 020 3713 8000

Reporting a concern to the GPhC does not replace AB Pharmacy’s complaints procedure or the NHS complaints procedure.

21. Complaints about personal information

If your complaint concerns how we have collected, used, stored or shared personal information, please contact:

Data Protection Lead
AB Pharmacy
20A Turner Road
Edgware
HA8 6AU

Email: info@abpharmacy.co.uk

If you remain dissatisfied, you may complain to:

Information Commissioner’s Office

Telephone: 0303 123 1113

Website: www.ico.org.uk

22. Independent advocacy and support

People making an NHS complaint may be entitled to free and independent NHS complaints advocacy.

Your local authority or Healthwatch service can provide details of the advocacy service available in your area.

You may also ask a relative, friend, carer or other representative to support you, subject to appropriate patient consent.

23. Recording and learning from complaints

We will maintain an appropriate record of complaints, including:

• the date received;
• the nature of the complaint;
• whether it concerned an NHS or private service;
• the outcome of the investigation;
• the response provided;
• action taken;
• identified learning; and
• whether the complaint was resolved.

Complaints and trends will be reviewed as part of the pharmacy’s governance and quality-improvement arrangements.

Where required, AB Pharmacy will prepare and submit an annual NHS complaints report setting out:

• the number of complaints received;
• the subjects of those complaints;
• whether complaints were upheld;
• whether they were referred to the Ombudsman; and
• the action taken or planned as a result.

Complaint information used for general learning, reporting or training will be anonymised wherever possible.

24. Review of this procedure

This procedure will be reviewed:

• at least annually;
• after a serious complaint or patient-safety incident;
• following relevant changes in law, NHS requirements or GPhC guidance;
• when there is a change in the pharmacy’s ownership or services; or
• where monitoring identifies that the procedure is no longer effective.

25. Pharmacy details

AB Pharmacy
Operated by AB Care Group Limited
Company number: 16514123

Pharmacy address:

20A Turner Road
Edgware
HA8 6AU

Email: info@abpharmacy.co.uk

Telephone: [insert pharmacy telephone number]

Superintendent Pharmacist: Ashok Karsan Hirani 2044923