A good complaints system.

Healthcare professionals should accept that mis­ takes are an inevitable part of clinical practice. Despite what patients may think – and many expect doctors to be infallible, and the healthcare system to be flawless – medicine by its very nature is risky. Accepting that things will not always go to plan, and that patients will complain, should make doctors think about developing their own system for handling complaints. While complaints often provide invaluable feedback on an individual's performance, they also offer dissatisfied patients an opportunity to air their views. Even if a complaint is without justification, a complaints system that works well will at least allow an individual to respond and give their account of the incident. This can help doctors avoid further, potentially more difficult, avenues of investigation such as by the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) or a clinical negligence claim. Having a good­quality, standardised process for complaints handling, with well­trained staff in place, can help to avoid further anxiety for both parties. It is much better to embrace a complaint than to evade it. With understanding, empathy, action and honesty, a strong complaints handling system can benefit everyone involved. Solutions to the growing number and severity of clinical negligence claims come in various forms. A key step in avoiding litigation is understanding what dissatisfied patients actually want following an adverse outcome. One way of doing this may be to establish a strong and comprehensive complaints system. While a healthcare professional's natural inclination when an adverse outcome occurs may be to hide, having a good complaints system in place can offer benefits that prevent an individual from facing criticism. Ignoring complaints or failing to provide the means for patients to complain may simply force them down alternative routes, either by making a complaint to the HPCSA or by instructing an attorney to begin a claim. To help support the argument for a good complaints system, it is important to understand why patients are aggrieved with their care, and what leads them to sue. While financial compensation is an understandable goal in cases of severe injuries, most other patients primarily want answers, explanations and reassurance. They often seek a sense of closure that is undoubtedly provided by a full and honest clarification of what happened and why it went wrong. This is usually accompanied by a sincere apology, which in itself is not an admission of liability. …