PALS & Complaints Officer

Position: PALS & Complaints Officer
Job Title:

PALS & Complaints Officer

Location:

Home working predominantly, with some occasional meetings at London House, Bracknell, RG12 2UT

Hours:

30 hours per week across Monday - Friday between 8.00am – 5.30pm (6 hours per day)

Trust:
Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

Role type:
Temporary for 7 months with possibility of extension

Reference: 91231

Role details

The Complaints and PALS Officer will play a key role in ensuring that patients, carers and stakeholders have access to a responsive, compassionate and effective complaints and Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS).

Duties & responsibilities

* Act as first point of contact to Service Users, their Relatives or Advocates who may wish to raise concerns about services or care and treatment provided to the Service User via the complaints or PALS procedures.

* Ensure all referrals are dealt with in a person-centred manner and to maintain a calm professional approach in response to complainants who may be extremely distressed, angry or aggressive.

* Determine whether issues raised by the complainant indicate an immediate need or risk to the Service User or others in addition to the management of a complaint and where necessary to be able to record accurate information on the case and liaise with the appropriate clinical service to alert and escalate to them.

* Have full knowledge and understanding of the Local Authority & NHS Complaints (England) Regulations 2009 in order to determine whether issues raised by potential claimants can be managed through the complaints process and where this is not the case to be able to explain this in a sensitive manner, recognising the complainant may be in distress, and signpost individuals to the appropriate organisation.

* Ensure that the Trust works within the legal requirements of the Local Authority & NHS Complaints (England) Regulations 2009 in maintaining the confidentiality of Service Users and to explain the issues of consent in a calm and professional manner to complainants who may find this difficult to acknowledge or accept and become angry.

* Provide a high level of support to Trust staff who seek advice and information on the management of complaints or PALS queries.

* Develop an awareness of Independent Advocacy Services that are available in order to support complainants to access Advocacy Services.

* Ensure the management of the complaints process in accordance with the requirements of the Local Authority & NHS Complaints (England) Regulations 2009 acknowledging complaints to complainants on behalf of the Chief Executive and opening complaints files to investigation with Locality Service Managers.

* Attend consultation meetings with complainants when required by the Complaints Manager or Investigating Officers, where the information may be highly complex, sensitive or distressing and to take accurate notes of meetings. To transcribe these notes and other notes taken by the Complaints Manager or Investigating Officers. To provide notes of consultation meetings to complainants and their representatives and where amendments are requested by the complainant to liaise with the Complaints Manager or Investigating Officer.

* Develop and maintain a database to manage the day-to-day management of complaints and PALS cases and ensuring that investigation reports are received from Investigating Officers within required time frames to enable the Complaints Manager to prepare a response to the complainant for the Chief Executive to consider.

* Prepare responses for less complex complaints as designated by the Complaints Manager or PALS Manager and to support these Managers with more complex responses.

* Maintain the complaints module of the DATIX system and ensure that all data is accurately recorded.…