1. Resolving complaints at local level Bill Prasifka Medical Council CEO

2. Medical Council Role 2

3. Medical Council’s role
Good professional practice for safe,
high quality patient care
Maintaining the register of doctors
Safeguarding education quality for doctors
Setting standards for doctors’ practice
Responding to concerns about doctors

4. Priorities and direction 2014-2018

5. Public Trust in doctors is high…5

6. Trust in Doctors

7. Reasons for That Trust 7

8. Patient and Doctor views on Professionalism

9. Satisfaction with Doctor
2015
(1,000) %
Very Satisfactory
Fairly Satisfactory
Neither
Dissatisfactory
Very Dissatisfactory
Don’t know
How would you rate your overall experience of the doctor you attend most often?

10. Learning from experience10

12. Listening to complaints
Some 2,000 handled over a five year period
Quantitative review
Likelihood of complaint … and doctor-related factors
Source of complaint and linkage with outcomes
Likelihood of “higher impact” disciplinary decision- making … and doctor-related factors
Qualitative review
Get beyond numbers
Deeper understanding – “why” and “how” questions

13. Are some doctors at risk or more complaint-prone?
Male
Older
Specialists
Graduates of Irish Medical Schools
Previous complaint

14. Predominant categories of complaint
Misdiagnosis, inadequate examinations and misprescribing
Poor or absent communication
Lack of care and compassion
Inappropriate sexual comments and behaviour
Discrimination
Practice-related issues

15. What do Patients Value? 15

16. Patient and Doctor views on Professionalism

17. Importance of Local Resolution17

18. Common Feedback I just wanted to find out what happened.
I don’t want this to happen again
Nobody listened to me

19. Outcome of Complaints

20. Successful Resolution at Local Level
Can be used for issues not related to doctors’ fitness to practise – “seriousness” threshold.
Listening to concerns.
Need for openness, honesty, understanding.
Each complaint provides a learning opportunity.

21. Procedures and Resources

22. Successful Resolution at Local Level
Supports available from indemnifiers
HSE Open Disclosure Policy
Culture that welcomes comments, suggestions and complaints
Identify opportunities for clinical audit?

23. Notifying the Medical Council
Duty to notify the Council on matters relating to doctors’ fitness to practise

24. Our Guidance 24

25. Culture of Patient Safety

26. Open Disclosure and Duty of Candour

27. Thank You