Health Service Ombudsman
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Ombudsman brings wider public benefit from individual complaints
The Parliamentary
and Health Service Ombudsman, Ann Abraham, publishes
her
Annual Report 2007/081 today. The Report links lessons
learned from individual complaints to the wider public for the
benefit of improved services.
The Ombudsman, whose office dealt with over 11,500 enquiries during the year, reported on 926 investigations across both her jurisdictions. 290 of those reports related to government departments and a range of other public bodies in the UK: of those two thirds (68%) were either fully or partly upheld. 636 reports related to the NHS in England and of those around half (49%) were fully or partly upheld.
A number of case studies are included which show how patterns of poor administration can be identified from individual complaints and how the Office has worked with service providers to change their approach. The Ombudsman particularly mentions the improvements to the tax credits system identified in her report Tax Credits: getting it wrong? 3 which are now being implemented by HM Revenue and Customs.
The Report also highlights the forthcoming changes to NHS complaints handling which will see a new, simpler system in place from 1 April 2009. Complaints that are not resolved locally by those who delivered the original service may be referred directly to the Ombudsman, so removing the current intermediate review by the Healthcare Commission.
While acknowledging the challenges faced in her own organisation and in improving local resolution across the NHS, the Ombudsman warmly welcomes the change. She said 'For my own Office it represents yet a further opportunity to deliver individual benefit to those already aggrieved and wider public benefit to all those countless citizens who will make use of the NHS in the future.
It is therefore just one aspect of that larger project of delivering meaningful individual and public benefit, upon which it continues to be my privilege to be fruitfully engaged.'
During the year, the Ombudsman published her Principles for Remedy4 which set out how she thinks public bodies should put things right when they have gone wrong. Based on the same principles of legality, flexibility, transparency, fairness and accountability as the Principles of Good Administration5, this new guidance clarifies the Ombudsman's expectations of fair remedies for aggrieved customers.
The Annual Report is published alongside a new Strategic Plan for 2008-11, the Corporate Business Plan for 2008/9 and the detailed Resource Accounts for 2007/8. Together these documents offer a comprehensive view of the Office's role, work and ambition.
To view a full copy of the Annual Report 2007/08 go to: http://www.ombudsman.org.uk/improving_services/annual_reports/index.html
Ends
Notes to Editors
1. Publication details: Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman Annual Report 2007-08 Bringing wider public benefit from individual complaints, HC 1040, 6 October 2008.
2. From 7 October 2008 you can also find the report on the website at: http://www.ombudsman.org.uk where you can find all publications mentioned in this notice.
3. The Parliamentary Ombudsman Tax Credits: getting it wrong, HC 1010, 8 October 2007
4. The six Principles for Remedy are: Getting it right, being customer focussed, Being open and accountable, Acting fairly and proportionately, Putting things right, and Seeking continuous improvement.
5. The six Principles of Good Administration are: Getting it right, Being customer focussed, Being open and accountable, Acting fairly and proportionately, Putting things right, and Seeking continuous improvement.
6. The Ombudsman investigates complaints about government departments and a range of other public bodies in the UK, and the NHS in England. She is independent of the Government, the civil service and the NHS. Her services are free and confidential.
7. For more information or copies of the report, please contact Emma Nicol or Sandy Perrins on 020 7217 4258/ 3943
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