Half of older patients’ families struggle to complain about poor care in hospital

Older vulnerable people are often reliant on relatives to raise concerns when things go wrong in hospital, yet over half (51%) of family members with a concern say it is difficult to complain about the hospital care or treatment of an older relative, according to a new survey published today.

The survey, published by Gransnet and the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, asked Gransnet members about their experiences of complaining to the NHS on behalf of an older relative in hospital.

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman sees far fewer complaints from older people than would be expected given older people's high usage of NHS services.

A previous report by the Ombudsman Service has highlighted that many older people are afraid to raise the alarm when something goes wrong in their care and worry about what will happen to them if they do.

Two thirds of people believed their complaint would make no difference

The survey of over 600 Gransnet members reveals that:

• of those who were concerned about the treatment of their older relative, just over half (58%) complained;
• Two-thirds (67%) of those who complained do not believe complaining makes a difference;
• over 1 in 3 (35%) respondents said there were occasions where they were concerned about the care or treatment of their older relative in hospital; and
• almost 1 in 3 (31%) felt that the hospital staff did not have an adequate understanding of their older relative's condition or care needs.

Concerns over communication with older patients and their families

The survey also reveals wider concerns about communication with older patients and their families:

• 2 in 5 (40%) participants did not feel they were kept informed about their older relative's condition in hospital and were not given enough opportunities to discuss their care and treatment; and
• 1 in 3 (33%) respondents felt they were not adequately involved in decisions about their older relative's care and treatment.

Poor communication is a factor in around one third of all complaints the Ombudsman service investigates about the NHS in England.

'Too many suffer in silence'

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman makes final decisions on complaints that have not been resolved by the NHS in England and UK government departments and other UK public organisations. Commenting on the survey's findings, Rob Behrens, Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, said: ‘The NHS is a life-line for many vulnerable older people but when things go wrong, too many are suffering in silence.

‘NHS staff should make patients and their loved ones aware of how to complain, point them to available support, and make it absolutely clear that their future care will not be compromised.'

Lara Crisp, Editor of Gransnet, says it's not acceptable that over half of people with a concern feel they can't complain or that it won't make any difference if they do.

She commented: ‘Patients deserve better than this. While we appreciate that services are stretched, communication with patients and their families must be improved. They should feel that their concerns are taken seriously and addressed properly.

Crisp continued: 'Hospital staff need to be supported and enabled to communicate better with patients so that everyone is clear about the complaints procedure and patients are reassured that this will not affect their future care.'

Concerns about healthcare should be properly investigated

Caroline Abrahams, Age UK's Charity Director, commented: 'Everyone who goes into hospital should feel confident that they will be treated with dignity, and concerns or complaints about their care and treatment will be listened to and properly investigated.

'It is only by listening to their views and experiences of the patients that the NHS can ensure that care scandals that have blighted our hospitals in the past do not happen in future.'

• The types of issues respondents experienced included their older relative not being given enough help with their personal care needs, such as going to the bathroom and washing themselves, which affected over 1 in 4 (28%).
• Almost 1 in 5 (19%) of those surveyed said that their older relative had not been treated with dignity and respect during their time in hospital.