234 days to probe NHS complaints

FAMILIES are left ‘traumatised’ because an NHS watchdog is taking too long to deal with complaints, MPs warn.

Patients unhappy with their treatment go to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman as a last port of call. But it emerged last night that it takes an average of 234 days to investigate complaints. One case took three and a half years. Last year the understaffed watchdog received 31,444 complaints but investigated only 8,119.

The public administration select committee called on ministers to improve the NHS complaints system.