Giving Feedback at St Catherine’s Hospice

Your voice matters – thank you for helping us care better

At St Catherine’s Hospice, we warmly welcome all feedback. Whether you wish to share a compliment, tell us about an experience, suggest an improvement, or raise a concern, your feedback helps us:

• Celebrate the compassion, kindness and professionalism of our staff and volunteers
• Learn from people who use our services
• Continually improve the care and support we provide to patients and families and our other service users

Many families also choose to share personal stories about their time with us. These stories are incredibly powerful, helping us understand what truly matters and reminding our teams why their work is so important.

We want to hear from you

If you would like to:
• Say thank you to a member of staff or team
• Share what made a difference to you or your family
• Suggest something we could do differently or better
• Tell us about something that didn’t go as expected

Please let us know. There is no right or wrong way to give feedback, and you can choose the approach that feels most comfortable for you.

Ways to share feedback

💬 Speak to us directly

Often, questions or concerns can be resolved quickly by talking to someone involved in your care:
• The nurse in charge
• A ward, department or service manager
• A member of our reception team, who can help you find the right person

📝 Forms and surveys

You may be invited to complete feedback forms, questionnaires, or satisfaction surveys during or after your care. These help us understand what is working well and where we can improve.

📧 Email or post

You can write to us at any time:
• Email: enquiries@stcatherines.co.uk
• Feedback or complaints: complaints@stcatherines.co.uk
Post:
St Catherine’s Hospice
Lostock Lane
Lostock Hall
PR5 5XU

🌐 Online feedback

You can share feedback online via:
• Our website: www.stcatherines.co.uk/about-us/feedback
• Independent platforms such as iWantGreatCare or Care Opinion (QR codes are available in the hospice)

Compliments and positive feedback

Compliments mean a great deal to our staff and volunteers. All positive feedback is shared with teams so that kindness, compassion and excellent care can be recognised and celebrated across the hospice.
Your words really do make a difference.

When something hasn’t gone as expected

We understand that there may be times when your expectations are not met. Please let us know as soon as possible so we can listen, learn, and – where possible – put things right.

Whenever we can, we aim to resolve concerns informally and locally, through open and honest conversations.

Making a formal complaint

If a concern cannot be resolved informally, you have the right to make a formal complaint.

What happens next?

• We will acknowledge your complaint within 3 working days
• We will discuss with you:
  • What has happened
  • What you would like to see happen
  • How we will investigate
  • How you would like to receive our response
• We aim to provide a full response within 30 days
• If an investigation takes longer, we will keep you informed

All complaints are taken seriously, investigated thoroughly, and used to improve our services.

If you are not satisfied with our response

If you remain unhappy after receiving our response, you may ask for your complaint to be reviewed by:

• A Director or the Chief Executive

The Board of Trustees is informed of complaints (with details anonymised) to support learning and quality improvement.

If needed, you can also seek a review by an independent external organisation, free of charge.

Time limits

It is best to raise concerns as soon as possible and normally within 12 months of the event, or from when you realised there was a concern. Complaints made outside this timeframe may still be considered where appropriate.

Will my care be affected if I complain?

No. Making a complaint will not affect your care in any way. All feedback is treated sensitively and confidentially, and complaint information is kept separate from clinical records.

External support and advice

If you would like independent advice or support, you may wish to contact:

• Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman – ombudsman.org.uk | 0345 015 4033
• Care Quality Commission (CQC) – the regulator of health and social care
• Patient Advice and Liaison Services (PALS) at local NHS hospitals
• Citizens Advice Lancashire West / Preston – citizensadvice.org.uk
• Fundraising Regulator – fundraisingregulator.org.uk
• The Independent Betting Adjudication Service Ltd (IBAS) – Any lottery dispute that cannot be resolved should be referred to ibasteam@ibas-uk BAS, PO Box 62639, co.uk / ibas-uk.com

If you need additional support to share feedback, such as help with communication or interpretation, please let us know and we will do our best to help.

Thank you for sharing your experiences and stories. Your feedback helps shape the care we provide today and in the future.