A report by NHS consumer watchdog Healthwatch England has found as many as one in three hospitals take no action when visitors complain to them.
The report has come about following numerous calls to the organisation from concerned members of the public who had been told to “mind their own business” when attempting to draw attention to issues with relatives’ medical care.
Issues include elderly patients wandering corridors by themselves where, in one incident, staff refused to look after a man who had soiled himself after going outside by himself for a cigarette. He was not wearing any shoes and was found in a confused state by visitors. Another confused elderly patient who had got into a lift and didn’t know where he was, was ordered by staff to go back to his ward with the two ladies who found him.
Other visitors complained of cramped and filthy Accident and Emergency wards full of stretchers stained with dried blood; dementia patients not being given enough water to drink, and patients not wearing suitable clothing. There were even incidents of sensitive patient records being left on display.
In many cases, complainants were told their complaint would not be dealt with as they were not patients or would only do so if the patient gave their consent. This goes against the current NHS regulations which state anyone can make a complaint if they feel they have just cause whether they are a patient or not.
In the report, 46 out of 123 trusts surveyed said they took no notice of visitors’ complaints and opted to do nothing or took them as “general feedback.” More worryingly, many hospital trusts said they did not even record complaints of this nature and did not accept them as complaints at all.
164 health trusts were approached for the survey.
30 hospitals had visitor complaints looked into by third parties. Figures recorded between 2011 and 2014 from the 30 trusts reveal 8,448 complaints from the public in total were investigated in total.
Healthwatch England stated the results of its survey painted a picture of a “defensive and obstructive culture” among trusts which did little to protect vulnerable patients. And when complaints by third parties were recorded, they only accounted for one fifth of all cases meaning potential risks to patients are not being investigated, it added.
Chairman Anne Bradley said: “Hospital patients often feel incredibly vulnerable and too scared to complain when they receive poor care. And yet widespread misapplication of the rules is preventing concerned citizens standing up on their behalf.
“Our findings indicate that where trusts are recording complaints raised by these ‘citizen whistleblowers’ they account for a fifth of all cases, so to ignore them presents a huge risk in terms of addressing both the sheer number of individual incidents of poor care and the overall source of feedback they can offer.”
If you would like to complain about medical negligence you or a family member has experienced in hospital, please call our dedicated team on 0800 028 2060. You can also visit our dedicated website www.medicalnegligence-solicitors.com for more information.