Complaints Procedure

If you have a complaint or concern about the service you have received from the Dentists or any of the staff working in this practice, please let us know. At Springfield Dental Clinic we take complaints very seriously indeed and try to ensure that all our patients are pleased with their experience. We operate a practice complaints procedure as part of the NHS system for dealing with complaints. Our complaints system meets’ national criteria. You are also reminded that there is the dental complaints service which deals with non-NHS complaints. Their address is shown below.

How to complain

We hope that most problems can be dealt with promptly, at the time they arise with the person concerned. If your problem cannot be sorted out 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, this will enable us to establish what happened more easily. If it is not possible to do this, please let us have details of your complaint within 6 months of the incident occurring/being discovered. Please do not leave your complaint too long, as you need to inform us of any problems within 12 months.

If you wish to make a complaint you should:-

Write to: Stephen Ross, Principle Dentist/Practice Owner, Springfield Dental Clinic, 2 Springfield Road, Guiseley, LS20 8AL

Alternatively, you may ask for an appointment with Stephen Ross by phoning: 01943 884848 in order to discuss your concerns.

He will explain the complaints procedure to you and will ensure that your concerns are dealt with promptly. It will be a great help if you are as specific as possible about your complaint.

What we shall do

We shall acknowledge your complaint within 3 working days and aim to investigate and respond to your complaint within 10 working days of the date when you raised it with us. Where it is not possible to provide a response within 10 working days you will be kept informed and advised of the reason for the delay. We shall then be in a position to offer you an explanation, or a meeting with the people involved. When we look into 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 to do this.
  • Make sure you receive an apology, where appropriate.
  • Identify what we can do to make sure the problem doesn’t happen again.

Complaining on behalf of someone else

If you are making a complaint on behalf of someone else, they will need to provide written consent for you to do this, specifically naming you as the person complaining on their behalf.

Consent would not be needed if the person concerned is incapable of complaining for themselves because of illness or infirmity. Please note that we keep strictly to the rules of medical confidentiality.

Taking your complaints further

The emphasis is to resolve complaints locally. However, if you remain dissatisfied you can contact:-

Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS)

If your complaint is about the NHS you can contact the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) for advice on how to take things forward:-

  • By phoning: 0113 206 6161
  • By writing to:  Wharfedale Hospital, Newcall Carr Road, Otley, West Yorkshire, LS21 2LY
  • By sending an email to: patientexperience.leedsth@nhs.net

Health Service Ombudsman

You can contact the Health Service Ombudsman to investigate your NHS complaint. The Health Service Ombudsman is a free, independent complaints service. If they decide that the NHS has got things wrong, they can make recommendations to put things right. You can contact the Health Service Ombudsman in the following ways:

  • By phoning 0345 015 4033 (textphone 0300 061 4298 for people who are deaf or have problems using a standard phone).
  • By sending an email to:phso.enquiries@ombudsman.org.uk
  • By texting ‘call back’, with your name and mobile number, to 7624 005.  Someone will then call you
  • By writing to:  Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman Millbank Tower, Millbank London, SW1P 4QP
  • You can also visit their website at: www.ombudsman.org.uk.

NHS England

Most NHS care and treatment goes well but sometimes things can go wrong. If you are unhappy with your care or the service you have received, you can also contact NHS England.

https://www.england.nhs.uk/contact-us/complaint/  (complaint)

http://www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/AboutNHSservices/Pages/nhs-friends-and-family-test.aspx  (to provide feedback)

  • By phoning: 0300 311 22 33
  • By email to: england.contactus@nhs.net
  • By writing to:  NHS England, PO Box 16738, Redditch, B97 9PT.  If you are making a complaint please state: ‘For the attention of the complaints team’ in the subject line.

The Dental Complaints Service

The Dental Complaints Service is a Department of the General Dental Council which deals with complaints regarding private dental treatment: