Patient feedback
Your views are very important to us as they help us to improve the services we provide. We take regular surveys of patients to ensure we are not missing anything. We welcome any kind of feedback, whether positive or negative, as this helps us identify where things are working well and where there may be room for improvement.
We would like to hear about your positive experiences within the Trust to build on the good work that already takes place and share your compliments with the staff involved. You can contact the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) with any feedback or compliments; email papworth.pals@nhs.net or phone 01223 638896.
Raising concerns or complaints
Although we always like to hear about the things we have done well, we would also like to hear about the things we could do better. Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is committed to providing the very highest standards of care.
We will always try our best to get things right, but sometimes mistakes happen. When they do, it is vitally important to put things right as soon as possible, and to ensure that the same mistakes do not happen again.
If you have a concern about your care or treatment, or about any of our services, please talk to the member of staff who is with you at the time; they will be as helpful as possible and may be able to resolve your concerns straight away. If it is not possible to resolve your concerns immediately, we will respond by letter. Alternatively, we may be able to offer a face-to-face meeting.
You may also wish to raise a concern or complaint on behalf of another person. Where possible, the patient will be asked to give their permission for you to pursue a problem on their behalf. If you want to let someone make a complaint or raise a concern on your behalf you will need to complete a consent form which will be sent to you with a formal acknowledgement.
We will also require a consent form to be completed should we need to contact another organisation for comments or in the event of the complaint being about more than one organisation.
In the first instance, please detail your complaint in writing addressed to:
Chief Executive
Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Papworth Road
Cambridge Biomedical Campus
Cambridge
CB2 0AY
Email: papworth.viewpoint@nhs.net
We take all complaints very seriously and will conduct a thorough investigation. We will then respond to you as quickly as possible. We may contact you when we receive your complaint to discuss it further.
We will formally acknowledge your complaint within three working days.
We will do our best to give you a full reply as quickly as possible, usually within 25 working days.
In our reply, we will try to tell you what action we are taking to make sure the problem you raised does not happen again.
As an organisation, we are committed to learning from all the complaints we receive.
The fact that you have complained will not adversely affect your treatment and your complaint is not kept in your medical notes.
NHS Complaints Advocacy Service
Making a complaint can seem difficult but support is available. If you require help and support with pursuing a formal complaint against the Trust you may wish to contact the NHS Complaints Advocacy Service, a free and confidential service available to anyone who wants support to make a complaint to the NHS.
You can contact them on 0300 330 5454 or email nhscomplaints@voiceability.org.
NHS Complaints Advocacy Service leaflet
If you live in Cambridgeshire or Peterborough you can contact Total Voice for free advice and support:
Telephone: 0300 222 5704
Email: tvcp@voiceability.org
Website: www.totalvoicecp.org
If you live outside the Cambridgeshire area, you can contact your local agency for support and advice:
Bedfordshire: https://www.pohwer.net/ - 0300 456 2370
Suffolk: https://www.totalvoicesuffolk.org/ - 01473 857631
Norfolk: https://www.pohwer.net/norfolk - 0300 456 2370
Alternatively for independent complaints advocacy in other areas please contact PALS on 01223 638896 or papworth.pals@nhs.net who will be able to signpost you to the correct organisation.
Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman
We will make every effort to try and resolve your complaint or concern. If you are not happy with the response you receive let us know as soon as possible. We can meet with you to discuss the matter or carry out further investigations; alternatively we may suggest you contact the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) for help.
The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman can review the way your complaint has been handled within 12 months of the final outcome.
Visit https://www.ombudsman.org.uk/making-complaint and click on 'Can we look into your complaint?'
Call 0345 015 4033 from 0830 to 1730, Monday to Friday.
Send a text to the PHSO 'call back' service on 07624 813 005, with your name and mobile number.