Blue Lotus Complaints Procedure
1. Policy Statement
1.1. Blue Lotus encourages an open culture for our care centres and everyone who accesses our services. An environment that welcomes free discussion of any issues, concerns or complaints and a process that openly addresses and seeks agreed resolution, aligned with the ethos of providing high quality support and care for residents. This policy acknowledges that some people find it difficult to express concerns or make a complaint, therefore, the Blue Lotus complaints policy standards and procedure will support and enable complaints to be made.
1.2. An expression of concern will become a complaint when any of the following criteria is met:
a. the person explicitly states they wish the issue being discussed to be officially recorded as a complaint.
b. the team member receiving the complaint recognises a level of seriousness that in their opinion should be regarded as a complaint or where there has been a regulatory breach that must be reported.
c. the concern has continually reoccurred.
1.3. Complaints can be received either verbally or in writing by the person impacted or the advocate of the individual who wishes to raise the complaint.
1.4. The Blue Lotus complaints procedure is designed to ensure the protection of individuals and the people we support and to maintain high standards of care received by them. It is also intended to promote our open and proactive ethos.
2. Procedure
At Blue Lotus Care Centres, all team members are expected to listen courteously and respectfully to concerns and complaints and attempt to resolve these initially at local level. If a team member is not able to do so they should explain the Company’s policy for making a complaint. The Blue Lotus policy is based on two stages:
Concern (Local and informal)
Discuss with the senior person in charge at the time your concern(s) they may be able to address the issue(s) directly and rectify the problem(s) in a timely manner.
All Concerns are recorded.
If this is unsatisfactory, then please proceed to the formal process:
Second Stage
Contact the General Manager of the applicable Care Centre or provide written details of a Guest’s unresolved concern or complaint(s). All complaints will be acknowledged within three days of being received.
The General Manager will investigate your complaint and respond to you in writing within 14 working days, setting out the investigation undertaken, and any action taken as a result of their findings. If there is no resolution to the matter at this point and you remain dissatisfied with the outcome or you do not feel comfortable discussing the matter with the General Manager, then you must consider whether you wish to proceed in the manner detailed in the next paragraph.
Where repeated or continuous complaints are raised at a Care Centre, the matter will at your specific request, be allocated to a Senior Manager, not involved in the day-to-day management of the specific Care Centre, to examine and oversee the complaint.
3. Time
3.1. A complaint must be made no later than 2 months after the date the event occurred or, if later, the date the event came to notice.
3.2. The time limit will not apply if Blue Lotus is satisfied that the complainant can give a good reason for not making the complaint within the specified time limit or despite the delay, it is still possible to investigate the complaint effectively and fairly.
3.3. It is the Blue Lotus expectation that all concerns and complaints brought to our attention should be satisfactorily resolved within three months of initial contact or where a different timescale has been agreed within that agreed period.
4. Complaints made on behalf of a GUEST
We are only able to accept complaints made on behalf of a Guest where we are satisfied that the person has consented either verbally or in writing to the issues being raised, or where the Guest cannot complain unaided and cannot give consent because they lack proper mental capacity and the Representative acts in the Guest’s best interest, i.e. to prevent detriment to the person.