THE hospital trust in charge of the John Radcliffe has not received a single compliment through its official feedback system in at least three years.

A Freedom of Information Request to Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust revealed the number of times that the Patient Advice and Liason Service(PALS) for Oxfordshire was contacted in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019.

According nhs.uk, the service is meant to provide: "confidential advice, support and information on health-related matters."

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It is advertised as being a point of contact for patients, their families and their carers, able to help with health-related questions, resolve concerns or problems when using the NHS, as well let patients know about the NHS's complaints procedure.

The Oxfordshire figures show a steady drop in contact overall, going from 3,633 in 2016 to 1,994 in 2018, with 857 people getting in touch so far for 2019.

Informal complaints made up the majority of contact, with 1,955 in 2016, 1122 of 2103 in 2017, and 977 in 2018.

For every year, however, there was not a single compliment recorded.

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Rosalind Pearce, executive director of Healthwatch Oxfordshire, earlier this month called for better awareness of the PALS system in response to a report on the trust by the Care Quality Commission.

It saw the trust downgraded from 'good' to 'requires improvement' overall, with the poor condition of operating theatres, patient privacy and staff shortages all raised.

She said: "The complaint resolution process needs to be made quicker and clearer, as currently many patients are not sure about the role of PALS (Patient Advice and Liaison Service) in making a formal complaint. We would like to see greater clarity in this."

The trust's chief executive Dr Bruno Holthof said immediate changes had been made following the inspection.

In response to the figures, Sam Foster, Chief Nursing Officer at the trust, said: “Our trust receives hundreds of compliments every year, but these are often received through several different channels including our Patient Experience Team. 

"Patients and their families often contact those directly involved in their care with their compliments, or increasingly use social media to tell us how happy they are with the treatment and care they have received. 

She added: "Our Friends and Family Test survey is also used to collate compliments monthly. 

"We are incredibly grateful to those who take the time to contact us to thank us for the care we give – it really is appreciated.

“Our Patient Advice and Liaison Service is predominantly used to record and manage informal concerns or queries, rather than compliments on our services.”