THE quality of treatment and the attitude and behaviour of staff were the big issues that patients complained about in the Western Trust over the past year.
The Western Trust area received 746 complaints making up 12.8% of the total complaints about the health service across the North in 2017/18.
A report, Complaints Received by HSC Trusts, Board and Family Practitioner Services in Northern Ireland (2017/18) details that the Western Trust received the lowest number of complaints out of the five health trusts, and the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service.
Two hundred and forty-two complaints were made about the quality of treatment and care that the patients received in the Western Trust, while there was 107 complaints about staff members attitude and behaviour.
Other notable issues included 144 complaints submitted due to patients being unhappy with the communication and information they received, while 49 complaints were made due to the delay or cancellation of treatment for inpatients.
When broken down into the speciality of the complaint, services for children and young peoples received 88 complaints, while general medicine provision received 73 complaints. 75 complaints were made about general surgery – the highest of all the Trusts in the North.
There was 70 complaints made by patients who were unhappy with their treatment in the Accident and Emergency in the Western Trust region.
A spokesman for the Western Health and Social Care Trust (Western Trust) highlighted that complaints have decreased from last year, and stated that the Trust is very proactive in encouraging the public to share their views and welcomes every complaint as an opportunity to learn and to improve the service.
“In 2017/18, the Western Trust received the lowest number of complaints out of the five Health and Social Care Trusts in Northern Ireland, with the number of complaint issues received decreasing by 27% from the previous year (2016/17).
The Trust promotes the Patients Advocacy Office to all patients, clients and relatives. If anyone has an issue with their care or treatment we would encourage them to raise this through the Trust’s comments and complaints system.”
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