Complaints Policy

At Churchdown Osteopaths, we want every patient to feel listened to, respected and well cared for. If something doesn’t feel right, or if you have a question or concern about your care or experience, we encourage you to let us know. Most issues can be resolved quickly through an open conversation, and we always welcome the opportunity to put things right.

We encourage concerns or complaints to be raised as soon as reasonably possible so that we have the best opportunity to understand what happened and work with you to resolve the issue.

How to contact us:

Telephone: 01452 714511.

Email: hello@churchdownosteopaths.co.uk

Letter: Jo Edwards (Practice Manager), Churchdown Osteopaths, 102 Chosen Drive, Churchdown, Gloucester, GL32QU  

Procedure for Making a Complaint:

Stage 1 – Raising a Concern

Most concerns are best resolved through an open conversation. We encourage you to speak to your osteopath in the first instance wherever possible. If you would feel more comfortable, you are also very welcome to speak to a member of our reception team or our Practice Manager, Jo Edwards.

Stage 2 – Formal

If your complaint cannot be satisfactorily dealt with on an informal basis, you may make a more formal complaint in writing. Ideally through completing this form, however, you may also write to us or email us. If you're complaining on behalf of someone else, include written permission from them. Your complaint should detail the issue as clearly and concisely as possible, including any relevant documents such as screen shots of correspondence, and your contact information for our reply. Upon receiving your complaint, we will:

  • Acknowledge it within two working days, outlining the next steps.

  • Treat your complaint confidentially, limiting knowledge to essential personnel.

  • Conduct a thorough investigation, aiming for a resolution within 15 working days. If delays occur for any reason, we will keep you updated.

  • Where appropriate, we aim to work with you to reach a mutually agreeable resolution.

  • We will inform you in writing of the conclusion, along with reasons for it and any action being taken or proposed

  • Where appropriate, learn lessons and use them to review and improve our service.

  • Keep a record so that continuous themes are identified and can be addressed to prevent further similar complaints from arising.

  • Any resultant staff disciplinary actions will be handled confidentially.

Stage 3- Raising a Formal Complaint if You Still Aren’t Satisfied

If your complaint is not against a clinical team member, stage 3 does not apply and the final decision is with the practice owner.

If your complaint relates to the clinical care you have received and you remain dissatisfied after our internal process has been completed, you may wish to seek independent advice or support. The institute of Osteopathy is the representative body for UK osteopaths and has a very successful record of helping patients who have concerns about their treatment.

Institute of Osteopathy: Freephone 0800 110 5857, or email enquiries@iOsteopathy.org.

The Last Resort

If your concern is particularly serious or relates to patient safety, you also have the option of contacting the General Osteopathic Council (GOsC), the statutory regulator for osteopaths. You can do this through their website (www.osteopathy.org.uk/standards/complaints) or by phone on 0207 357 6655.  Please note that the General Osteopathic Council cannot award compensation.

We aim to learn from every complaint to continuously improve our services and maintain a high level of satisfaction within our community.