Complaint Procedure

GENERAL COMPLAINTS POLICY

Nursing Solutions Limited Complaint and Disciplinary Investigative Procedures are set out below and should be considered in conjunction with the Agency’s Terms of Engagement and the Agency’s Policies and Procedures for Domiciliary Care Workers.

Where there is a complaint against Nursing Solutions, an agency worker or a client, the complainant should in the first instance raise the matter with Nursing Solutions or the client in writing. The complainant must provide relevant documentation and any documentary evidence supporting the complaint to the agency/client to assess the basis of the complaint.

If an agency worker wishes to make a complaint against a client, or a member of the client’s staff, the worker should report the complaint to the client in the first instance. (If the complaint concerns abuse of any form please refer to the abuse policy for procedures of reporting). The complaint will be dealt with by the client according to their own Complaints Procedure. The agency should be informed as soon as possible following the event for information.

If the complaint is made against an agency worker, the worker concerned will be notified in writing of the complaint, along with a request that the worker responds within 14 days of the date of sending out the notification. (For complaints of abuse refer to Abuse Policy).

A letter will also be sent to the complainant informing him/her of the action taken and stating that a response will be sent as soon as possible after the expiry of the 14 day period.

The worker must respond in writing within 14 days of the request to investigate the complaint. If the worker is unable to respond within the 14-day period, the worker must notify the complainant in writing giving reasons.

The complainant will at his/her discretion extend the period for response to a given date, which will be not longer than 28 days after the original request to investigate the complaint.

On receiving a response from the worker, the agency may contact both the complainant and the worker to seek further information or clarification of any matters raised. Responses to all correspondence should be requested and received within a period of 14 days of the date of that correspondence.

The agency will make a decision on the matter in one of the following ways:

(a) If the agency is satisfied that the complaint has been resolved, both

parties will receive a letter stating that this appears to be the case and that no further action is proposed. If appropriate, the worker concerned will be advised on how the problem might be avoided in the future and will be asked to confirm that action has been taken on this recommendation.

(b). If having received a response from the worker concerned, the Agency is satisfied there is no case to answer, a reply to this effect will be sent to both the complainant and the worker concerned.

(d) The worker will be required to take a specified course of action and/or be given a written understanding as to the future conduct expected from the worker.

(e) That the worker should not be offered placements for a given period.

(f) That the offer of placements should be revoked permanently.

If the complainant is not satisfied with the decision of the agency in respect of the above, he/she should state his/her reasons in writing and request the matter to be submitted to the local Authority or National Care Standards Commission who will consider the complaint on the basis of the evidence submitted.