A message from our Practice Manager about feedback and online reviews

14 Dec 2020 4:47 PMTandem Health
A message from our Practice Manager about feedback and online reviews

Quality improvement is a key aspect of medical practice and it is something this facility and doctors consulting from these rooms take seriously. Doctors welcome constructive feedback as a way to improve their service to you.

One way to provide feedback is via a regular formal feedback survey exercise conducted throughout each re-accreditation cycle. The questions asked during the survey are wide ranging and your responses provide a good overview of the things we do well and the areas which require improvement. Put simply, how patients view the facility and the services doctors provide matters. Therefore, please let us know if there is anything we can do to help you or improve the care you receive.

All feedback, complaints and concerns are given due regard and if you feel that your concerns have not been addressed then it is important that you talk to your doctor or the Practice Manager about any problems or suggestions.

There are a number of ways feedback can be communicated. We prefer to receive feedback in person either by telephone, email or letter. This allows us to address the complaint with you immediately and provide feedback regarding outcomes.

However, we appreciate that sometimes both positive and negative feedback is shared in the public domain - Google reviews, online forums, social media for example. Doctors understand this is now the ‘way things are done’ and we continue to monitor and respond to feedback received via these channels in the limited capacity privacy regulations allow.

However, I respectfully ask you to consider the following before posting a review to the public domain:

  • Is your feedback something that would be better discussed or raised directly? Generally, the answer is yes, as we can resolve issues or provide explanation promptly. Please speak with your doctor. 
     
  • Are you writing your review about the correct practice location? Often people attribute reviews to the wrong facility. These can be extremely damaging and difficult to remove. Please ensure you have the correct name, address and contact details before adding a Google review to a business profile.
     
  • Please take a moment to determine if your review is truly about the service you received, or perhaps it is because you did not receive exactly what you asked for during your consultation. Negative reviews often relate to restricted pain medication not being prescribed by doctors. It’s important to be aware that doctors are governed by strict regulations and timeframes as to when certain medications can be prescribed. If your doctor was unable to give your pain medication before it was due, this is not bad service. Your doctor is following best practice by looking after your health and following the regulatory guidelines to which they are bound. Your doctor is your health advocate – open communication is the key to understanding and it is important that you seek clarification if you believe that your concerns have not been adequately addressed.
 
  • Is your review targeted towards independent doctors providing services from these rooms or employed administration and management staff of this facility? If so, please speak with us directly as positing this sort of information to a public domain could be interpreted as bullying or defamation and could warrant legal action.
     
  • We recognise the right to share a negative review but targeting people publicly who have no mechanism of reply or defence is not tolerated. This facility's zero tolerance stance towards threatening behaviour does extend to the online world i.e. we also have a zero tolerance policy towards humiliation, intimidation, verbal abuse, slander and bullying online.
     
  • Please remember, when you write a review, once it is in the public domain it cannot be rectified and we may seek further action.
     
  • Fake reviews from fake patients are not fair to anyone. Receiving a review from a patient who has never received services from doctors consulting from these rooms is always disappointing. The name of our facility is similar to another nearby, therefore please make sure you are reviewing the correct location.
     
  • Some reviews relate to waiting time. Doctors understand this frustration, because we know time is a precious commodity. Time management is always a priority. Doctors are constantly reviewing our approach and ways to minimise waiting times. Waiting times are troublesome in any primary care setting due to the nature of general practice and the services doctors provide. Emergencies walk through the door every day. Please rest assured, if you or your loved one were that person in need of urgent assistance, you too would be seen first. These daily emergencies are planned for, however unexpected or additional emergency walk in patients can complicate any well-run appointment schedule. Telephone consultations also offer a great alternative to waiting in rooms to see your doctor. However, face to face consultations are generally considered optimal care and telephones consultations are not always appropriate. 
     
  • Consider the outcome are you attempting to achieve via your review. A reply from your doctor, a negative rating against the facility, a complaint, a resolution, an explanation, reassurance, assistance, general feedback. There may be many reasons, most of which we can help you to resolve immediately via phone or in person.
     
  • Most reviews will generally result in a phone call as we are restrained by privacy and advertising regulations relating to what we are permitted to reply, discuss, disclose and post online. By posting a detailed review, you are also sharing personal details with the public about your healthcare. Doctors cannot respond in detail as this would be a privacy beach. Doctors have no option other than to discuss away from the public space. Therefore, please expect contact from us if you need to leave an online review, as our aim is to offer resolution where possible and we cannot do this online.
  • I would urge you to use our in-house complaints process as a first step. You have a right to review and we welcome online reviews and comment as long as the review is accurate, honest and isn’t targeted or unjustified.

If you have any issues, please talk to your doctor as your feedback is welcome and generally any issue you have can be resolved.

Doctors strive to serve their patients in the best and safest way possible with the aim to achieve optimum health outcomes for their patients. Your doctor can only do this if you work with them, your feedback assists in this process.

Please direct feedback to your doctor or myself, Marilyn Elliot, Practice Manager at 07 5552 1888 or via email: lmcadmin@tandemhealth.com.au
 

Alternatively, if you have a serious issue or complaint that you believe should be referred to the Office of the Health Ombudsman, please refer to the details below.

Office of the Health Ombudsman
PO Box 13281
George Street
BRISBANE
QLD 4003
Phone: 133 646
Fax: (07) 3319 6350
Web: www.oho.qld.gov.au
Email: info@oho.qld.gov.au