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We offer a range of services throughout England, Scotland and Wales – many of them tailored to suit the varied needs of our diverse communities.

Living with HIV

If you are living with HIV, your life can seem more complex than before and you may face all kinds of day-to-day problems. We can help you navigate your way through them.

Need Help Now? call THT Direct 0845 12 21 200

Making a complaint.

If you feel that the treatment you've received doesn't meet the standards that we've set out in these pages then you might want to make a complaint. You can get help making a complaint about the NHS from the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (or PALS).

PALS

There is a PALS for every hospital, and also one at your local Primary Care Trust who you can approach about problems with GPs, NHS dentists and other services.

PALS are there to:

  • help resolve problems
  • explain how to make an official complaint
  • give you information about NHS services
  • provide confidential advice and support on using the NHS

They should act on your behalf, and make contact with other NHS staff and organisations to try to sort the problem out. They will try to do this informally at first, seeing if a solution can be found through discussion.

However the quality of the PALS service does vary from place to place.

PALS can also tell you how to use the official complaints procedure. The complaints procedure is separate from PALS, and you don’t need to have contacted PALS to use it.

Complaint checklist

Here's some important things to remember about the complaints procedure:

  • You need to make the complaint within 12 months of the problem happening, or within 12 months of knowing about the problem. This time limit may occasionally be waived if there was a legitimate reason why you could not complain sooner.
  • Write to the head of the organisation where the problem occurred - for example, the chief executive of the hospital or the doctor in charge of the surgery. Alternatively, write to the Complaints Department of your local Primary Care Trust.
  • The complaints investigator should negotiate a deadline with you for when you are due to receive a reply.
  • If you’re not happy with the response to your complaint, your case can be reviewed by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman.
  • Financial compensation is not available for legal expenses but small amounts may be given for inconvenience, out of pocket expenses etc. 
  • If you want help making a complaint, ask the Independent Complaints Advocacy Service or THT Direct.