Complaints Policy
Our commitment to you
At Medpharm, we are committed to providing safe, effective and professional pharmacy services.
We welcome feedback from patients, carers, representatives, care homes and healthcare professionals. Feedback and complaints help us understand where things may have gone wrong and provide an opportunity to improve our services.
If you are unhappy with any aspect of the service you have received from Medpharm, we encourage you to contact us. We will treat your complaint seriously, fairly, respectfully and confidentially.
Making a complaint will not adversely affect the pharmacy services or care you receive from us.
What can I complain about?
You can raise a complaint or concern about any aspect of the pharmacy services provided by Medpharm, including, for example:
- dispensing or supply of medicines;
- delivery of medicines;
- delays in receiving medicines;
- communication with the pharmacy;
- advice or information provided;
- prescription processing;
- medication supplied to a care home;
- confidentiality or privacy concerns;
- the conduct or behaviour of a member of the pharmacy team;
- an error or potential error involving your medicines;
- our website or distance-selling pharmacy service; or
- any other aspect of the service you have received from us.
If your concern involves an immediate risk to your health or medicines, please make this clear when contacting us so that it can be reviewed urgently by a pharmacist.
How to make a complaint
You can make a complaint:
- by telephone;
- by email;
- in writing; or
- through any complaints/contact facility provided on our website.
Contact Medpharm
Email: info@med-pharm.co.uk
Telephone: 0208 149 9059
Post:
Medpharm
3 Austin Mews, High Street, Hemel Hempstead, HP1 3AF
If you require assistance making a complaint, please contact us and we will make reasonable efforts to help you.
Complaints may be made by the patient directly or, with appropriate authority where required, by a carer, family member, representative or other person acting on the patient’s behalf.
Who will deal with my complaint?
Complaints are managed under Medpharm’s complaints procedure.
Complaints will be reviewed by an appropriate member of the pharmacy team and escalated to the Responsible Pharmacist, Superintendent Pharmacist or another appropriate senior person where necessary.
Complaints involving:
- patient safety;
- dispensing errors;
- clinical decisions;
- medicines;
- professional conduct; or
- serious or recurring concerns
will be referred for appropriate pharmacist and/or Superintendent Pharmacist review.
What happens when we receive your complaint?
We aim to resolve straightforward concerns as quickly as possible.
For complaints falling within the NHS complaints procedure, we will normally acknowledge your complaint within 3 working days of receiving it.
Where a complaint is made verbally and cannot be resolved promptly, we will make a written record of the complaint.
When acknowledging your complaint, where appropriate, we will discuss or explain:
- how your complaint will be investigated;
- what issues will be considered;
- whether we require any further information from you;
- who will be dealing with the complaint; and
- when you can expect to receive a response.
The time required to investigate a complaint will depend on its nature and complexity.
We will investigate complaints fairly and proportionately and will keep you informed if the investigation takes longer than originally expected.
How we investigate complaints
Depending on the nature of the complaint, our investigation may include:
- reviewing your Patient Medication Record;
- reviewing prescriptions;
- reviewing dispensing records;
- reviewing delivery records;
- speaking with members of the pharmacy team;
- reviewing relevant communications;
- reviewing records relating to care-home medication;
- contacting a GP practice, care home or other healthcare professional where appropriate and lawful;
- reviewing relevant policies and procedures;
- reviewing relevant clinical or regulatory guidance; and
- investigating any related patient-safety incident.
Your information will only be accessed and shared where necessary and appropriate for investigating and responding to your complaint.
Our response
When our investigation has been completed, we will provide you with an appropriate response.
Where relevant, this will explain:
- how your complaint was investigated;
- the information considered;
- what we found;
- our conclusions;
- any action already taken;
- any action we intend to take;
- any learning or improvements arising from the complaint; and
- what you can do if you remain dissatisfied.
Where something has gone wrong, we will be open about this and will take appropriate steps to address the issue and reduce the likelihood of it happening again.
Patient-safety concerns
If your complaint identifies a potential patient-safety incident, dispensing error or other significant clinical concern, it will be referred promptly to a pharmacist.
Where appropriate, Medpharm may also:
- contact the patient, carer or care home;
- contact the prescriber or another healthcare professional;
- take immediate action to protect the patient;
- record and investigate the incident through our patient-safety procedures; and
- report the incident to an appropriate external organisation where this is required.
Urgent clinical concerns will be prioritised.
When should I make an NHS complaint?
For complaints relating to NHS pharmaceutical services, complaints should normally be made within 12 months of:
- the date on which the matter occurred; or
- the date on which you first became aware of the matter,
whichever is later.
A complaint made outside this period may still be considered where there is a good reason for the delay and it remains possible to investigate the matter fairly and effectively.
Complaining on behalf of another person
You may make a complaint on behalf of another person.
Where appropriate, we may need to confirm that you have permission to act on their behalf before discussing confidential information.
There may be circumstances where information can be considered or disclosed without consent where this is lawful and necessary, for example where there is a serious patient-safety or safeguarding concern.
NHS complaints – alternative route
If your complaint relates to NHS pharmaceutical services, you may choose to complain either:
directly to Medpharm
or
to the NHS commissioner responsible for the service, normally the relevant Integrated Care Board (ICB).
You should not normally pursue the same NHS complaint simultaneously through both routes.
Information on how to complain about NHS services and how to identify the appropriate Integrated Care Board is available through the NHS website.
If you remain unhappy with an NHS complaint
We hope to resolve your complaint directly.
However, if you have completed the local NHS complaints process and remain dissatisfied with the response, you may be able to refer your complaint to the:
Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman
The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman independently considers unresolved complaints about NHS services in England.
Telephone: 0345 015 4033
Further information is available from the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman.
Concerns about a pharmacy or pharmacy professional
The General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) regulates pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and registered pharmacies in Great Britain.
If your concern relates to the fitness to practise of a pharmacy professional or raises concerns about whether a registered pharmacy is meeting the appropriate regulatory standards, you may contact the GPhC.
The GPhC does not replace Medpharm’s own complaints procedure or the NHS complaints procedure, but it may consider regulatory concerns that fall within its remit.
General Pharmaceutical Council
Telephone: 020 3713 8000
Further information about raising a concern is available on the GPhC website.
Independent help with NHS complaints
If you would like independent support in making an NHS complaint, free NHS complaints advocacy may be available.
Your local Healthwatch can help you identify the NHS complaints advocacy service available in your area.
Confidentiality and data protection
Complaints will be handled confidentially and in accordance with applicable data protection and confidentiality requirements.
Information will only be accessed, used or shared where necessary to:
- investigate the complaint;
- respond to the complainant;
- protect patient safety;
- comply with legal or regulatory obligations; or
- improve our services.
Please see our Privacy Policy for further information about how Medpharm handles personal information.
Learning from complaints
Medpharm records and reviews complaints to identify:
- recurring concerns;
- patient-safety risks;
- service issues;
- training needs;
- opportunities for improvement; and
- changes required to policies, procedures or working practices.
Where appropriate, action will be taken following a complaint to improve the quality and safety of our pharmacy services.
Accessibility
We want our complaints process to be accessible to everyone.
If you require information in an alternative format or need assistance communicating with us, please contact the pharmacy and we will make reasonable efforts to support you.
About Medpharm
Pharmacy: Medpharm
Pharmacy owner: Medpharm14 Limited
Registered pharmacy address: 3 Austin Mews, High Street, Hemel Hempstead, HP1 3AF
GPhC pharmacy registration number: 9013312
Superintendent Pharmacist: Ilyas Alloualid
Complaints email: info@med-pharm.co.uk
Telephone: 0208 149 9059
Last reviewed: September 2026