Office of the Health Services Commissioner Annual Report 2008

Categories of Accepted Complaints Against
Health Service Providers
Doctors and hospitals were again the
largest group of respondents to complaints
about health services. This is consistent
with previous years and, to be expected,
given the large number of health services
they provide.
Please refer to Appendix 1 for a list of
providers by type and medicical practitioner
specialities.
Medical Practitioners
The category of medical practitioners
includes specialist service provision
but not doctors who are employees of
public hospitals.
The most frequently named issues in
relation to treatment are inadequate
treatment and diagnosis and negligent
treatment (approximately 66%). These
issues are those outlined in the complaint
statement and, in reality, there is little to
separate “negligent treatment” from
“inadequate treatment” and they could be
viewed as one group. In most of these
cases there will be no evidence of
negligence found in the complaints process;
however the patient often will believe this
is the case if communication about risks
has not been sufficiently communicated
or understood.
403
18%
367
22%
Inadequate
Diagnosis
26%
33%
290
Inadequate
Treatment
2%
0%
Medication
Information
Used
10%10%
Negligent
Treatment
76
Dentists in Private Practice
Hospitals
Medical Practitioners
Remaining Providers
Figure 5
Categories of complaints against health service providers
22%
20%
5%
2%
Other
3% 2%
7%
5% 5%
3%
Rough
Treatment
Unskilful /
Incompetent
Treatment
Legend
2007 - 2008
2006 - 2007
Wrong
Diagnosis
2% 3%
Wrong
Treatment
Figure 6
Treatment Issues - Medical Practioners
General Practitioners
The number of complaints against General
Practitioners could be seen as quite low in
comparison with the number of patient
contacts in a year. The relationship between
doctors and their patients is very important
and mediation can serve to mend this
relationship in many cases. Other patients
may move frequently from one doctor to
another and it can be more difficult to
develop the rapport necessary for good
communication and to foster trust.
The widow of a man who had died of bowel cancer complained that his general practitioner had
been ignoring his complaints of abdominal pain for the past two years and had only referred him to a
gastroenterologist a short time before his death. In response the doctor explained that the man had
undergone several screening procedures and tests over the last three years and had been closely
monitored by the general practitioner and the specialist. In the end the cancer that had developed was
very fast growing and did not respond to treatment. The woman and the two doctors met in conciliation
to review the records and the woman was satisfied that all possible care had been provided.
HSCR issues
57%
4%4% 4%5%
53%
5% 4%
HRA issues
Legend
2007 - 2008
2006 - 2007
13% 14% 8% 8%
7%
5%
0%0% 0%0% 0%0% 1%1% 0%0% 4% 2%
Access Administratioication
Commun-
Cost None Rights Treatment
Access
& Correction
Collection
Data
Quality
Info
Available
to
Another
HSP
Transfer/
Closure of
HSP
Use &
Disclosure
Figure 7
Issues in GP Complaints
28
Office of the Health Services Commissioner | Annual Report 2008