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Case ref:201808182
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Date:October 2020
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Body:A Medical Practice in the Orkney NHS Board area
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Sector:Health
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Outcome:Not upheld, no recommendations
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Subject:clinical treatment / diagnosis
Summary
C complained about the care and treatment their late relative (A) received at the practice. A sought advice from the practice after returning home from a holiday abroad where they had become unwell. C's complaint related to a number of issues; including communication, medication, and scans.
We took independent advice from a GP. We found that there were no failings by the medical practice in terms of communication with the family or the time taken to perform scans. In relation to the management of A's medication, we found that the responsibility of stopping and restarting medication lay with the hospital clinicians. We also found that there were many reasons for A's balance and mobility issues, thus, a head scan was not indicated. We concluded that the care and treatment provided by the medical practice was of a reasonable standard. Therefore, we did not uphold this complaint.
C also complained about the practice's handling of their complaint. We found that the medical practice had provided their response to C's complaint to the health board within three weeks of them receiving the complaint and in line with the agreement to issue a coordinated response. However, there was a delay in the health board issuing the response to C for which they apologised for. We concluded that there was no fault by the medical practice and, therefore, we did not uphold the complaint.