Best Practice in Incident Review
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Best Practice in Complaint Handling for Health and Social Care Professionals
Handling complaints in healthcare can be challenging, but with the right strategies, you can effectively address and resolve issues.
395
Online
1 day
About this course
This intensive and highly practical healthcare legal training day assists attendees in understanding what is required in managing complaints properly.
Course syllabus
This course will consider the root causes of complaints, how to identify a potential complaint, defusing complaints, the importance of open culture, and reflecting and learning from complaints.
This course will move through all the stages involved in managing complaints. It will look at the importance of clarifying the issues of the complaint, organising meetings with the complainant and liaising with relevant staff. It will then consider how to investigate the complaint, record that investigation and draw it to a conclusion in accordance with best practice principles.
Key learning points:
- The root causes of complaints,
- How to identify potential complaints,
- How serious complaints are investigated,
- Interviewing key staff members – do’s and don’ts,
- Questioning skills,
- Handling people’s emotional responses to complaints,
- The importance of listening and managing expectations at the initial stage,
- How to defuse complaints,
- The importance of open culture, and reflecting and learning,
- The implications of your complaints policy in practice,
- Your role and responsibilities under the policy,
- Recording your investigation and drawing it to a conclusion,
- Your findings and recommendations,
- Writing your Investigation Report.
Who should attend and why?
Every healthcare agency must have a comprehensive complaints policy setting out how they respond to complaints. Those involved in investigating complaints need to be equipped with the necessary skills to deal with the complainant, other staff members and lawyers. They need to know how to investigate the complaint, who to talk to and how to get colleagues to co-operate with the investigation.
They also need to know how to run and manage meetings and how to make full and first class notes and records of their investigation and the outcome. In addition they will also need to understand the legal environment and how complaints are brought to litigation.
This healthcare legal training course will distill the knowledge, competencies and skills required to be able to handle all aspects of complaints management in accordance with best practice principles.
Who should attend
Every healthcare agency must have a comprehensive complaints policy setting out how they respond to complaints. Those involved in investigating complaints need to be equipped with the necessary skills to deal with the complainant, other staff members and lawyers. They need to know how to investigate the complaint, who to talk to and how to get colleagues to co-operate with the investigation. They also need to know how to run and manage meetings and how to make full and first class notes and records of their investigation and the outcome. In addition they will also need to understand the legal environment and how complaints are brought to litigation. This healthcare legal training course will distill the knowledge, competencies and skills required to be able to handle all aspects of complaints management in accordance with best practice principles.
Meet the team – Our expert trainers
La Touche Training Legal Experts
We work with a wide panel of specialist trainers, all chosen based on their experience and knowledge, experience both in practice and as trained trainers. The majority of our trainers are experienced...
Read BioPractical training with small groups to ensure quality.
Our training sessions are not lectures—they're practical, interactive experiences. The small group format allows every attendee to ask questions, take part in discussions involving practical exercises and role-plays.
This method of training allows attendees to put the skills learned into practice immediately. Course participants benefit from the focused attention and guidance of an independent expert.
Start improving your complaints handling today.
FAQs
Complaint handling in healthcare refers to the process of receiving, assessing, investigating, and responding to concerns raised by patients, families, or service users. Effective complaint management helps healthcare providers improve patient care, maintain trust, and meet regulatory obligations.
Healthcare professionals in Ireland are expected to manage complaints fairly, promptly, and professionally in line with HSE policies, patient rights standards, and principles of natural justice. Training helps staff reduce risk, improve communication, and support positive patient outcomes.
This type of course is suitable for healthcare managers, frontline staff, complaints officers, HR professionals, administrators, clinicians, and public sector employees involved in responding to patient or service-user complaints.
The main stages typically include acknowledging the complaint, gathering information, conducting a fair investigation, communicating with relevant parties, providing a clear response, and identifying lessons learned to improve services.
Staff should remain professional, empathetic, and calm while actively listening to concerns and explaining the complaints process clearly. Good communication can often prevent escalation and support early resolution.
Healthcare complaints in Ireland may involve obligations under the Health Act 2004, HSE complaints procedures, patient safety frameworks, data protection legislation, and principles of administrative fairness and accountability.
Yes. Early and effective complaint resolution can help reduce escalation to formal disputes, regulatory investigations, or litigation while also protecting organisational reputation and patient confidence.
Participants typically develop skills in communication, conflict management, investigation techniques, report writing, procedural fairness, and managing sensitive interactions in healthcare environments.
A transparent and respectful complaints process helps patients feel heard and valued. It also enables healthcare organisations to identify recurring issues and improve service quality and patient safety.
Yes. Complaints often involve sensitive personal and medical information, so confidentiality and compliance with GDPR and data protection obligations are essential throughout the complaints process.
