Your feedback helps us understand what is working well and less well for our patients, their families and carers. We use this feedback to review the way we do things and to change them if necessary. Compliments are also shared with the staff involved and used as examples of good practice for the wider team.
To tell us about your experience, please fill in our Surgery Feedback Form below. You can do this anonymously if you wish.
If you would like a response, please include your name and an email address or phone number. We will then review your feedback and get back to you with an update within 5 working days. Please be assured that any information you provide will be dealt with in the strictest of confidence. Alternatively, if you would prefer, please call or visit the surgery to discuss your feedback.
This online form is a quick way of giving feedback to the surgery.
How it works
We will ask a few questions about your experience. Your feedback is used to improve our services. If you would like a response to your feedback, you can also enter your contact details.
Before you fill in the form
Please note that this form cannot be used for medical requests or advice. By submitting this form you are giving your consent for your data to be used to improve your Surgery’s services, or to respond to your feedback. The data you submit will not be shared with any third party. If you wish to withdraw your feedback this can be done by contacting the Surgery.
Formal Complaints
We are committed to providing a professional, caring and efficient service to all our patients. Your feedback helps us understand what we are doing well and where we can improve. If something has gone wrong, please tell us so we can put it right.
Our employees are expected to carry out their duties in a professional manner and deal with patients with care, civility and efficiency and we welcome feedback from patients on our current working practice. You can discuss any concerns with staff directly as they arise so that we can deal with any issues immediately and we will do our very best to answer your question or to sort out any difficulty that you are having. If we have tried, but been unable to put things right and you wish to make a formal complaint, you can contact:
- Camilla Walker (Practice Business Manager); or
- Dr Rani Shenoy (GP Partner Complaints Lead)
How to Make a Complaint
It is always recommended that you try to raise your complaint in writing as this helps to make sure there is an accurate record of the concerns raised for everyone. You can do this by:
- Using the online feedback form above
- Emailing us at guildowns.feedback@nhs.net
- Writing to the surgery address: Guildowns Group Practice, The Oaks Surgery, Applegarth Avenue, Guildford, Surrey, GU2 8LZ
- Requesting a feedback form at our reception which you can complete and hand in at front desk.
If you need support with writing your complaint, please contact the Health Complaints Advocacy Service.
However, you can still make a complaint by phoning or visiting the surgery if you are unable to write to us.
You should make your complaint within 12 months of the event, or within 12 months of becoming aware of the issue We may accept complaints outside this time if there are good reasons for the delay and it is still possible to investigate fairly.
Please see further information on our complaints procedure, support and advice below.
Who Can Make a Complaint and What to Include
- Patients: If you have had a negative experience with our service, you may make a complaint about your own care. If your complaint also involves another organisation (e.g., social services), we may need your consent to speak with them.
- Someone Complaining on Behalf of a Patient: A friend or relative can make a complaint on a patient’s behalf, but we need written consent from the patient before we can discuss their care. Once we receive your complaint, we will request this consent from them directly. If the patient cannot give consent due to illness or an accident, please explain this in writing. We may still need to speak to the patient if possible. These steps ensure we follow strict rules on medical and personal confidentiality.
-
Please provide:
How We Handle Complaints
- We will acknowledge your complaint within 3 working days.
- We aim to complete our investigation and respond within 30 working days.
- We may contact you for more information or invite you to a meeting.
- If your complaint involves multiple organisations, you will receive a coordinated response.
Making a complaint will not affect your care or how you are treated.
Support with Making a Complaint
The Health Complaints Advocacy Service in Surrey is provided by Healthwatch Surrey in partnership with SILC (Surrey Independent Living Charity).
You can contact the team via:
Advice on how to make a complaint can also be found on the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman website at Complain for change: helping you make your complaint.
They have produced a useful leaflet of basic, easy to follow steps on raising an initial complaint to the NHS and how to take it further if it isn’t resolved by your hospital.
The leaflet is available in a variety of languages and formats, including Easy Read.
Further Information and After You Receive a Response
Further information is available in our complaints leaflet at: Complaints leaflet
If you prefer not to complain to the surgery directly you can send your complaint directly to the NHS Surrey and Sussex ICB Complaints Team at:
If you are unhappy with our final response, please let us know and we will review whether action can be taken. You also have the right to contact the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) within 12 months: Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, Millbank Tower, Millbank, London, SW1P 4QP, Tel: 0345 015 4033, Website: www.ombudsman.org.uk . Their service is free and independent.
Helping Us Use NHS Resources Fairly
We welcome patient feedback as it helps us improve our services and the care we provide, and we are committed to investigating all concerns fairly and thoroughly. From time to time, however, we receive repeated or disproportionate correspondence about matters that have already been fully investigated and responded to. This places significant demands on Practice staff and resources, ultimately reducing the time available to support patient care and meet other patients’ needs.
We therefore ask patients to be mindful of the impact that repeated complaints, multiple contacts about the same issue, or unreasonable demands can have on our ability to provide services effectively.
While we will always consider new information and legitimate concerns, once a matter has been fully reviewed and concluded, the Practice reserves the right to limit further correspondence where no new information is provided.
Thank you for helping us use our time and resources fairly so that we can continue to provide the best possible care for all patients.
Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Making Complaints
We welcome feedback and complaints, and we want to understand your experience in your own words. We are committed to handling complaints fairly, openly and compassionately, in line with the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman’s NHS Complaint Standards. Some people choose to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools to help write complaints or emails. We understand that these tools can be helpful in organising thoughts or expressing concerns.
However, AI-generated text can sometimes:
- include information that is inaccurate or not relevant;
- use overly formal or legal language;
- make complaints longer or more complex than necessary; or
- make it harder for us to clearly understand your personal experience.
This can occasionally delay our review or mean we need to contact you to clarify the details before we can respond fully.
The most helpful complaints are usually clear and concise, and explain:
- what happened;
- when it happened;
- how it affected you; and
- what you would like us to do to resolve the matter.
A short explanation in your own words is often more helpful than a long or highly formal letter.
If you choose to use AI tools, we recommend that you:
- check the wording carefully to ensure it reflects your own experience;
- remove any information that is inaccurate or not relevant; and
- Take care when including sensitive personal information.
Please be aware that some AI tools may store or use information entered into them.
For further guidance on using AI to support a complaint, you may find this resource from the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman helpful: Using AI tools to help your complaint
If you need support to make a complaint, for example due to language needs, disability, learning disability, or mental health or communication difficulties, please let us know. We will do our best to support you in a way that works for you.
