The National Health Service (General Ophthalmic Services) (Scotland) Regulations 2006

Complaints

11.—(1) Subject to sub paragraphs (2) and (3), a contractor shall establish and operate in accordance with this paragraph, a procedure (in this paragraph and in paragraphs 11 and 12 referred to as a “complaints procedure”) to deal with any complaints made by or on behalf of the patients and former patients of the contractor or an ophthalmic medical practitioner or optician who assists the contractor in the provision of general ophthalmic services.

(2) The complaints procedure to be established by a contractor may be such that it also deals with complaints made in relation to one or more other contractors or ophthalmic medical practitioners or opticians who assist the contractor in the provision of general ophthalmic services.

(3) The complaints procedure to be established by a contractor who provides general ophthalmic services or causes general ophthalmic services to be provided from more than one set of premises may be such that it relates to all those premises together.

(4) A complaints procedure shall apply to complaints made in relation to any matter reasonably connected with the provision or assistance in provision of general ophthalmic services and within the responsibility or control of–

(a) the contractor;

(b) where the contractor is a body corporate, any of its directors or former directors;

(c) a former partner of the contractor;

(d) any other person (being an optician, an ophthalmic medical practitioner or a person authorised to test sight by rules made under section 24(3) of the Opticians Act 1989) who is either employed by the contractor or engaged as his deputy;

(e) any employee of the contractor other than one falling within paragraph (d);

(f) when the contractor is a limited liability partnership , a member or former member;

(g) an ophthalmic medical practitioner or optician who assists the contractor in the provision of general ophthalmic services,

and in this paragraph and paragraph 12, references to complaints are to complaints falling within this sub paragraph.

(5) A complaint may be made on behalf of a patient or former patient with his consent, or–

(a) where the patient is a child under the age of 16 years–

(i) by either parent, or in the absence of both parents, the guardian or other adult person who has care of the child, or

(ii) in the care of an authority within the meaning of section 17(6) of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995, or in the care of a voluntary organisation, by that authority or voluntary organisation; or

(b) where the person is incapable of making a complaint, by a relative or other adult person who has an interest in his welfare.

(6) Where a patient has died, a complaint may be made by a relative or other adult person who had an interest in his welfare or, where the patient was as described in head (a)(ii) of sub paragraph (5), by the authority or voluntary organisation.

(7) A complaints procedure shall comply with the following requirements–

(a) the contractor shall specify a person (who need not be connected with the contractor and who, in the case of an individual, may be specified by his job title) to be responsible for receiving and investigating all complaints;

(b) all complaints shall be–

(i) recorded in writing,

(ii) acknowledged, either orally or in writing, within the period of 3 days (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, Christmas Day, New Year’s Day and other public or local holidays agreed with the Board) beginning with the day on which the complaint was received by the person specified in head (a), or where that is not possible, as soon as reasonably practicable, and

(iii) properly investigated;

(c) within the period of 10 days (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, Christmas Day, New Year’s Day and any other public or local holidays agreed with the Board) beginning on the day on which the complaint was received by the person specified in head (a), or where that is not possible, as soon as reasonably practicable, the complainant shall be given a written summary of the investigation and its conclusions;

(d) where the investigation of the complaint requires consideration of the patient’s eye examination records, the person specified under head (a) shall inform the patient or person acting on his behalf if the investigation will involve disclosure of information contained in those records to a person other than the contractor, or a director, partner, deputy or employee of the contractor; and

(e) the contractor shall keep a record of all complaints and copies of all correspondence relating to complaints, but such records shall be kept separate from patients' eye examination records.

(8) At each of the premises at which the contractor provides general ophthalmic services or causes general ophthalmic services to be provided the contractor shall provide information about the complaints procedure which the contractor operates and give the name (or title) and address of the person specified in sub paragraph (7)(a).