Decision Report 201507796

When it was originally published on 25 January 2017, this case referred to a pharmacy in the Lanarkshire NHS Board area. This was incorrect, and should have read a pharmacy in the Greater Glasgow and Clyde NHS Board area. This was due to an administrative error which we have now corrected, and we apologise for any inconvenience that this has caused.

Summary

Mrs C contacted a pharmacy by phone for an emergency supply of her prescribed medication. She told us the pharmacist refused her request a number of times and that she was treated rudely and asked unreasonable and irrelevant questions. Mrs C complained to us that the pharmacy had not responded reasonably to her complaint. We were satisfied that the pharmacy had investigated her complaint in a reasonable manner. Their response was made within a reasonable timescale and contained a reasonable level of detail. We did not uphold this aspect of Mrs C's complaint.

Mrs C also complained about the lack of a suitable response to the issues she raised during the complaints process. We upheld this complaint because the pharmacy did not signpost Mrs C to this office at the end of their complaints process. They also caused confusion in setting out Mrs C's options for escalating the complaint and continued to correspond with her after they said their complaint process was at an end.

Recommendations

We recommended that the pharmacy:

• review their complaints process demonstrating compliance with the requirements which apply to NHS complaints in Scotland, and which will ensure the correct escalation advice is given to complainants, and provide us with a copy of the written process and evidence of its circulation to relevant staff.