Complaint Procedure

If you have a complaint or concern about the service you have received from the optometrist,please let us know. We operate a practice complaints procedure as part of a NHS system for dealing with complaints.

Our system meets national criteria and sets out what will happen and how long it will take. If your complaint is not resolved we can provide information of other agencies you can contact.

How to complain

We hope that most problems can be sorted out easily and quickly, often at the time they arise and 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, 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 Amanda Nasser. You may ask for an appointment in order to discuss your concerns. The complaints procedure will be explained to you and we 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:

1. Make a written record of the complaint;
2. Send you written acknowledgement of the complaint within 3 working days of the date on which the complaint is received, or as soon as reasonably practicable;
3. send you a report of the investigation into the complaint within 20 working days of the date on which the complaint is received, or as soon as reasonably practicable.

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 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.

Complaining on behalf of someone else

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

Complaining to the Health Board

We hope that if you have a problem, you will use our practice complaints procedure.

We believe this will give us the best chance of putting right whatever has gone wrong and an opportunity to improve our practice. This does not affect your right to approach your primary care organisation, if you feel you cannot raise your complaint with us or you are dissatisfied with the result of our investigation. You should contact the local NHS feedback and complaints officer as below:

NHS Grampian Feedback Service

Summerfield House

2 Eday Road

Aberdeen

AB15 6RE

Tel: 0845 337 6338

E-Mail: nhsgrampian.feedback@nhs.scot

Patients Advice and Support Service

PASS is an independent service which provides free, accessible and confidential information, advice and support to patients, their carers and families about NHS healthcare. You can access this service through any Citizen's Advice Bureau in Scotland. This is your local branch:

30-32 Batchen Street

Elgin

IV30 1BH

Tel: 01343 559 000

Website: www.moraycab.org.uk

The Optical Consumers Complaints Service

If your complaint cannot be resolved and is about non-NHS services you can contact:

The Optical Consumers Complaints Service

PO Box 4685

London

SE1 8YH

Mc Clintock Home eyecare Creag House, 2 Quarry road, Lossiemouth IV31 6DL

Tel: 01343-200406