Complaints Officer

The management of complaints is an essential element in determining where our services need to improve. Having the right people in the process is equally important to ensuring a good outcome for patients who make a complaint.

This role provides support in ensuring that all complaints, whether formal or informal, verbal or written, are responded to in accordance with Trust Values, the Duty of Candour and NHS complaints regulations. The aim is to ensure patients’ concerns are heard; that all complainants receive a clear and adequate explanation in response to their complaint and that lessons are learnt from identified failings.

The successful candidate will have experience of working in the NHS, knowledge and understanding of the NHS Complaints Procedure, good written and verbal communication skills, good organisational skills, excellent keyboard skills and telephone manner, together with the ability to work under pressure.

Oxleas offers a wide range of NHS healthcare services to people in community and secure environment settings. Our services include community health care such as district nursing and speech and language therapy, care for people with learning disabilities and mental health care such as psychiatry, nursing and therapies. Our multidisciplinary teams look after people of all ages and we work in close partnership with other parts of the NHS, local councils and the voluntary sector and through our new provider collaboratives.

Our 4,300 members of staff work in many different settings including hospitals, clinics, prisons, secure hospitals, children’s centres, schools and people’s homes.

We have over 125 sites in a variety of locations in the South of England. In London we operate within the Boroughs of Bexley, Bromley Greenwich and into Kent. We manage hospital sites including Queen Mary’s Hospital, Sidcup and Memorial Hospital, Woolwich, as well as the Bracton Centre, our medium secure unit for people with mental health needs. We are the largest NHS provider of prison health services providing healthcare to prisons within Devon, Dorset, Bristol, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire, Kent and South London.

We are proud of the care we provide and our people.

• We’re Kind
• We’re Fair
• We Listen
• We Care

• Work with and keep the senior managers (Associate Directors/Service Managers) regularly appraised of developments with concerns and complaints, highlighting serious cases at the earliest opportunity.
• Work closely with complainants to clarify issues to be investigated, their desired outcomes and to agree time-frames.
• Ensure that formal complaints are acknowledged within three working days.
• Ensure that complainants are given advice and guidance on the complaints procedure, including the role of independent advocacy and the Ombudsman’s Office.
• Following discussion with complainant upload details of the complaint onto Datix Web and ensure that complaint is directed to the appropriate Service Director.
• Keep the Complaints and PALS Manager regularly apprised of developments with complaints and concerns, highlighting serious cases at the earliest opportunity.
• Working in partnership with the Investigating Officer, monitor the progress of complaints investigations, providing advice and support where necessary.
• Liaise with external organisations and patient representatives with regard to individual complaints.
• Maintain contact with the complainant in protracted investigations.
• Review the response from the Investigating Officer to ensure that issues raised by the complainant have been fully addressed.
• Draft final response to the complaint on behalf of the Chief Executive.
• Liaise with Ombudsman’s office regarding 2nd Stage Complaints.
• Attend Directorate PEG meetings.
• Develop resources and work with services to ensure that service users, carers and members of the public are aware of the Trust’s complaints process.
• Keep up to date on legislation, national guidance and good practice relating to complaints.

• To ensure complete, confidential files are kept of all cases handled by:
• Maintaining the database (Datix Web) of complaints raised, both formal and complaints dealt with…