Poor complaint handling led to Trust improving its processes

What happened

During a number of appointments at the Trust, Miss A raised concerns, mainly about her care, but also about its communication. She subsequently complained about the Trust's complaint handling. The Trust addressed the clinical issues and accepted that it had not handled the complaint well, but said it was making improvements.

What we found

There were no faults in the clinical aspects of Miss A's care.

However, the responses to her complaint did not clearly explain what had happened and why. The handling of this complaint was unclear, and the Trust missed opportunities to provide the information and reassurance that Miss A sought.

The Trust explained to us that it had undergone a recent review of its complaints policy and procedure in order to make improvements.

We acknowledged the work the Trust had done since Miss A made her complaint. However, she had not had an appropriate remedy for her complaint.

Putting it right

The Trust acknowledged the faults and apologised to Miss A for the distress and inconvenience caused to her. It also paid her £250 in recognition of the way in which her complaint was handled. The Trust produced an update showing the changes it had put in place and how it would improve complaint handling.