Complaints against the NHS

Copyright © 2025 LexisNexis
Produced in partnership with Andrew Ritchie KC of 9 Gough Chambers
Practice notes

Complaints against the NHS

Copyright © 2025 LexisNexis

Produced in partnership with Andrew Ritchie KC of 9 Gough Chambers

Practice notes
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This Practice Note deals with the NHS complaints procedure, relevant legislation, local resolution and independent review by the Ombudsman, private patients and the care quality commission.

The NHS complaints procedure

A patient’s search for a proper explanation about what went wrong, for an apology and for a promise that such mistakes will not be repeated is often more important than compensation. Complaints may concern errors in diagnosis, poor communication from doctors, delay, misleading advice and many other forms of poor treatment or lack of treatment.

The starting point is the NHS complaints procedure. Legal aid or Before the Event (BTE) funding (where applicable) may be denied if the complaints procedure has not been used first without good reason. This procedure covers complaints made in relation to services provided or paid for by NHS organisations or primary care practitioners, ie hospitals, GPs, dentists, opticians and pharmacists. There are two stages to the procedure:

  1. •

    local resolution, and

  2. •

    independent review

If financial compensation is sought a patient will need to seek advice from a reputable

Andrew Ritchie
Andrew Ritchie, KC

9 Gough Chambers

Described as approachable, dependable, a classy team player, hard on the issues and hard working, Andrew has enormous experience in fatal accident claims, occupational health litigation, especially mesothelioma claims, employers liability litigation generally (for example Corr v IBC, the suicide case, HL) and road traffic and insurance law (for instance Rafiq v MIB, CA).

Andrew writes 9 chapters of the leading Personal Injury text Kemp & Kemp on Quantum including the fatal accidents chapter.

Many of Andrew's reported cases concern catastrophic injury claims involving brain damage, spinal injury and PTSD (he represented many victims of the Paddington rail disaster). Andrew's Clinical Negligence practice covers in particular Hypoxia at birth, Urology, Cardiology and neurosurgery.

Andrew also represents medical professionals before regulatory and disciplinary tribunals and also has considerable experience in professional negligence work arising from personal injury litigation.

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Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom
Related legal acts:
Key definition:
Complaints Procedure definition
What does Complaints Procedure mean?

The formal grievance procedure for pension scheme members and beneficiaries.

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