Sayer Clinics Satisfaction & Complaints Procedure
Dear Sayer Clinics Patient,
Welcome to an exciting future of health and vitality.
Everyone in our team is committed to providing exemplary Chiropractic, Osteopathy, Physical Therapy, Acupuncture, Massage and radiology in a relaxed and educational environment and we look forward to sharing this with you.
What we value above all else, is your satisfaction in our service. Whilst thankfully it is very rarely required, we want to outline our procedure to address any concerns or complaints you may have in the future.
Our complaints procedure involves 4 stages. Should the first stage fail to resolve your complaint, you will be referred to the next stage.
1) Initially we asked you to sign a written consent form which requires you to address any concern immediately with the therapist, to our receptionist staff or to practice manager Mrs Lucie Turon, but ideally directly to the doctor or therapist so they may address the issue to your satisfaction.
If you find it too difficult, the appropriate next step is to email your concerns to your therapist or clinic manager
2) Should this be unsuccessful, or should you feel uncomfortable dealing with your therapist or staff member for any reason, Lucie will refer you to another therapist within the practice should the issue require specific treatment knowledge and answers.
3) If a satisfactory outcome is not available via these avenues we will direct your concerns to our professional associations, The British Chiropractic Association or United Chiropractors Association. With these 3 stages, if the complaint is upheld, consideration will be given to redress your concerns. The outcome of any of those 3 stages will be confirmed to you in writing.
4) Finally should the issue not have been resolved via any of these avenues, you can pursue a formal complaint to the General Chiropractic Council (GCC), the regulatory body of the Chiropractic Profession at 44 Wicklow Street, London WC1X 9HL.
Should you consider contacting the GCC it is important to recognise that this represents a serious matter for the chiropractor and a significant commitment from yourself. The GCC regulates chiropractors and considers allegations of unacceptable professional conduct or incompetence. Thus, this complaints process would be centred around the appropriate intervention for the chiropractor if the case against him or her is found proved.
Unlike our internal complaints stages and the BCA or UCA stage the GCC have no jurisdiction to award you compensation although they will meet your expenses for attending a hearing in London. The proceedings are formal as in a court of law. You will be asked to write a detailed letter of complaint (The GCC will be reluctant to pursue an anonymous complaint), they will ask you to see their solicitor and swear an affidavit, they will then ask you to attend a hearing in London a number of months later and give formal evidence at a tribunal where you will be cross-examined by a defence lawyer and probably questioned by members of the tribunal.
The process involves several stages and takes many months to conclude.
If the GCC find a case against the chiropractor proven, the options available to them are to admonish the chiropractor, impose a condition of practice order, a period of suspension or to strike the chiropractor from the register.
There are similar pathways for complaints to osteopathic and physiotherapy associations.
General Osteopathic Council
Chartered Society of Physiotherapy
We hope that you will never need to use these procedures and look forward to a partnership of mutual trust and respect, and an exciting journey towards greater health and happiness.
Sayer Clinics Team
We're here to help you from 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday and 9am to 1pm on Saturdays. Simply email mail@sayerclinics.com and Lucie, Signe or Gen will help you.