Complaining About Health Services
We know that sometimes people who use drugs (PWUD) don’t receive the treatment that we deserve from health services due to stigma and discrimination. You can lodge a complaint if you feel you have been treated unfairly.
Most health services have feedback, complaint or grievances procedures that you can use to ensure your complaint is heard and addressed. If you intend to speak to someone in person, you can ask to speak to a manager, supervisor or director of nursing.
If it is a hospital, you should be able to contact the hospital’s designated complaints officer. They can ensure any complaint you make is taken seriously and treated confidentially. They can also ensure that you are kept informed about your complaint's process and outcome.
If your complaint involves a non-hospital-based health service, you can make a complaint in writing to the Director of Clinical Governance of your Local Health District (this complaint needs to be in writing).
However, if you are unsatisfied with the outcome, you can contact the independent NSW Health Care Complaints Commission (HCCC). They will investigate your complaint if you have first tried to resolve it directly with the health service.
How to complain
You can raise your complaint or concerns about your treatment in many different ways. You can speak to someone directly, by telephone or write a letter. The HCCC website has some information and tips on resolving your complaint directly with the service you wish to complain about.
If you are complaining in person or by phone, try to remember it will be more effective if you stay calm. It's a good idea to keep a record of the time and date of your discussions, the name and title of the person you spoke to, what you discussed, and the outcomes of the discussion, and what, if any, agreement was reached about your complaint.
Writing a complaint letter is a good way to get your complaint down in a clear and concise manner. Answering these four questions will help keep you on track.
What happened?
Who was involved?
Why are you making this complaint?
What do you want the service to do?
Most health services take public complaints seriously. Complaining sends a message to health services and police about what the community thinks is acceptable. You can contact NUAA at (02) 9171 6650 or via our contact form for more information about your options regarding making a complaint.