Take complaints and feedback as health check

Feedback and recommendations are crucial to continuous improvement and development of an organisation. The Ombudsman’s Awards 2019 winners Dr Anne Chan, Associate Consultant from Department of Medicine & Therapeutics of Prince of Wales Hospital, and So Yuen‑chun, Senior Manager of Patient Relations Team, United Christian Hospital address every complaint case with commitment. Their comprehensive follow-up helps patients rebuild trust in doctors and widow move on.

Regain trust from patient

Dr Anne Chan
Associate Consultant, Department of Medicine & Therapeutics, Prince of Wales Hospital

A patient who received an operation lodged a complaint as he suffered from paralysis from the waist down and twitching because of brain hypoxia and coma after extubation. Dr Chan, who treated his twitching, took part in meetings between the patient and the hospital as a negotiator, and referred the patient to occupational therapy team, which helped enhance living facilities and resume his everyday life. The patient later underwent rehabilitation treatment at another hospital. Dr Chan informed the responsible team about his condition in advance and expressed that she would continue to take care of the case. The patient said that Dr Chan’s diligence helped him rebuild trust and hope that he could still visit her for follow-up treatment in the future.

Apply triage skill

So Yuen-chun
Senior Manager, Patient Relations Team, United Christian Hospital

Some 20 family members requested to meet the attending doctor regarding a patient who passed away after transferring from United Christian Hospital to another hospital for surgery. Yuen-chun went to offer assistance as soon as she was notified of the case. With over 10 years of nursing experience at accident and emergency department, Yuen-chun managed the incident by applying triage skill. She expressed condolence to the family observantly and then learnt about the incident from the doctor. To assist the doctor and family to prioritise the issues to be settled, she arranged a meeting for both parties that night, in which eight calmer family members were invited. Then she called the widow every day to provide living and spiritual support. The widow was grateful to Yuen-chun’s wholehearted assistance and understood that the clinical team had done their best.