At Care 4 U Community Health Center, we are committed to providing quality patient care and ensuring patient satisfaction. Our formal Grievance Procedures are designed to resolve patient complaints and grievances promptly and consistently. We track complaints and grievances to implement necessary changes and process improvements under the direction of the Human Resources Department.

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Definitions

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• Complaint: A verbal expression of dissatisfaction by the patient regarding care or services provided by C4UCHC. Complaints can often be resolved at the point of occurrence by the staff present. Most complaints have simple solutions and are considered resolved when the patient is satisfied with the action taken.

 

• Grievance: A formal written or verbal complaint, whether real or perceived, regarding issues such as HIPAA violations, long wait times, disrespect, harassment, abuse, discrimination, neglect, preferential treatment, etc. Grievances are submitted to Human Resources. Any request from a family to treat a complaint as a grievance will be handled as such.

 

• Grievant: The individual (e.g., a patient) who submits a grievance for resolution through the grievance procedure.

 

Grievance Procedures

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Complaint Resolution

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• All patients have the right to file a complaint in verbal or written format.

 

• Information on how to file a formal complaint or grievance will be clearly displayed in the C4UCHC office.

 

• The Grievance Form will be made available to any patient upon request.

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• Any employee who receives a complaint from a patient or family member shall immediately attempt to resolve the complaint within their role and authority.

 

• If the complaint cannot be resolved immediately, the employee shall escalate it through the appropriate chain of command.

 

• The supervisor shall resolve the complaint or continue the resolution process with the patient's or family's knowledge and agreement.

 

• The Human Services Department may be contacted at any time during the complaint resolution process for assistance or support.

 

• Upon resolution, the department supervisor shall communicate all findings on the Patient Grievance Form to the Human Resources Department.

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Grievance Resolution

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• All patients have the right to file a grievance in verbal or written format.

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• Information on how to file a grievance will be clearly displayed in the C4UCHC office.

 

• The Grievance Form will be made available to any patient upon request.

 

• Grievant patients have the right to assistance during the grievance process and continuation of service without hindrance as a result of filing a grievance.

 

• All staff implicated in a grievance claim will be educated on the importance of the C4UCHC grievance process and procedures.

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Human Resources Responsibilities:

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• Ensuring fair and impartial continuation of service for the patient.

• Assisting the patient with the completion of the grievance process.

• Resolving the grievance in a fair and impartial manner.

• A verbal grievance must be followed by a formal written grievance within 30 business days of the initial incident if it is not resolved.

• Grievances not reported within the 30-day timeframe release C4UCHC from any liability.

• Personal claims may be made against the individual subject separately from C4UCHC.

 

Grievance Form and Procedure:

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• The Grievance Form must be completed in writing and submitted to Human Resources. Human Resources will explain the grievance procedure and provide a copy of the grievance policy and procedures to the patient.

 

• The grievant will provide a written statement on the grievance form, including all details of the grievance, and will sign and date the statement. The grievant will be given a copy of the signed and dated statement.

 

• Human Resources will place a copy of the incident report in the grievant’s and/or employee’s file and maintain records as required.

 

• Human Resources will inform all parties involved and schedule a Grievance Investigation, which will include:

 

• ​​Interviews with all parties involved.

• Assessment of responsibility and/or culpability of all parties involved.

• Contacting the grievant for additional information if needed.

 

Grievance Committee Review:

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• Within 15 working days of receiving the grievance, the Grievance Committee, composed of the Director of Human Resources, Chief Operations Officer, and Employee Manager, will review the grievance.

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• The Grievance Committee will evaluate the nature of the problem and recommend corrective actions, documenting their findings in a grievance letter.

 

Appeal Process:

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• The grievant has the right to appeal the findings and re-petition the Grievance Committee within seven days of receiving a formal response.

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• If the grievant is not satisfied with the findings, they may file a grievance directly with Medicaid, AHCA, DCF, HRSA, etc.