Increase in written complaints about NHS

New NHS Digital figures show that there were 208,400 written complaints received by the NHS during 2016/17 - an increase of 4.9 per cent on the previous year.

The Data on Written Complaints in the NHS, 2016/17 report examines numbers of complaints about both primary and secondary care and finds that there were 571 written complaints made every day.

Analysis of the report reveals that there was a 9.7 per cent increase in written complaints to GP and dental practices, as well as 90,600 primary care complaints, up from 82,600 in 2015/16.

Additionally, there was a 1.4 per cent year-on-year increase in secondary care complaints with 117,800 complaints received in 2016/17. 35.8 per cent of secondary care complaints were fully upheld, compared with 38.5 per cent in 2015/16.

Regionally, the highest overall percentage increases in all written complaints were in: Lancashire (14.6 per cent increase); the West Midlands (11.1 per cent); the North Midlands (8.8 per cent); and Yorkshire and Humber (8.6 per cent).

Likewise, the total number of complaints fell in: the South Central region (down 6.2 per cent); the South West region (down 1.8 per cent); and Cumbria and the North East (down 0.6 per cent).