Complaints guidelines

If you have a complaint or concern about the service you have received from the dentist or any of the staff working in this practice, please let us know. We operate a practice complaints procedure for dealing with complaints. Our complaints system adheres to national criteria.

How to complain

We hope that most problems can be resolved easily and quickly, often at the time they arise and with the person concerned. If your problem cannot be resolved in this way and you wish to make a complaint, we would like you to let us know as soon as possible – ideally, within a matter of days or at most a few weeks – because this will enable us to establish what happened more easily.

If it is not possible to do that, please let us have details of your complaint; within 6 months of the incident that caused the problem; or within 6 months of discovering that you have a problem, provided this is within 12 months of the incident.

Complaints should be addressed to Michelle O’Malley

We shall acknowledge your complaint within three working days and aim to have looked into your complaint within ten working days of the date when you raised it with us. We shall then be in a position to offer you an explanation, or a meeting with those involved. In investigating your complaint, we shall aim to:

• Find out what happened and what went wrong.
• Make it possible for you to discuss the problem with those concerned if you would like this.
• Make sure you receive an apology, where this is appropriate.
• Identify what we can do to make sure the problem doesn’t happen again.

If a patient complains on the telephone or at reception, the reception team will listen to their complaint and offer to refer them to Michelle O’Malley immediately.

If Michelle O’Malley is not available at the time, then the patient will be told when they will be able to talk to Michelle O’Malley or a member of the clinical team and arrangements will be made for this to happen.

The member of staff will take brief details of the complaint and pass them on. If we cannot arrange this within a reasonable period or if the patient does not wish to wait to discuss the matter, arrangements will be made for someone else to deal with it.

If the complaint is in writing the letter will be passed on immediately to Michelle O’Malley. If a complaint is about any aspect of clinical care or associated charges it will normally be referred to the dentist, unless the patient does not want this to happen.

Complaining of behalf of someone else

Please note that we keep strictly to the rules of confidentiality. If you are complaining on behalf of someone else, we have to know that you know that you have permission to do so. A note signed by the person concerned will be needed, unless they are incapable (because of physical or mental illness) of providing this.

Complaining to the health authority

We hope that, if you have a problem, you will use our practice complaints procedure. We believe this will provide the best chance of putting right whatever has gone wrong and an opportunity to improve our practice. But this does not affect your right to approach the local health authority, if you feel you cannot raise your complaint with us or you are dissatisfied with the result of our investigation.

Policy for handling complaints

 If you have a complaint about the practice, a member of the team or treatment you have received, please do not hesitate to contact the Practice manager, Michelle O’Malley.  This can be done in person or in writing and we will deal with the matter as quickly as possible in accordance with the practice complaints policy.

As a private patient, if you are not satisfied after your complaint has been dealt with, you can contact the Dental Complaints Service:

Dental Complaints Service

Stephenson House,
2 Cherry Orchard Road,
Croydon,
CR0 6BA

Phone: 08456 120540
Email: [email protected]

If you wish to contact the General Dental Council they can be reached by  at gdc-uk.org.