Advice and support (PALS)

Your enquiry is very important to us. However, our staff are currently prioritising work to manage and limit the spread of COVID-19 (Coronavirus), which means you may experience a delay in receiving a response to your enquiry.

Dorset HealthCare's Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) is a free, confidential service offering support to help you sort out any concerns you may have about the care we provide, and guide you through the different services provided by the Trust.

We cannot give clinical advice but we will speak with other staff on your behalf who can provide this level of support. We can also help you get support from other local or national agencies.

PALS can:

• provide on-the-spot help to try and resolve your questions quickly and efficiently
• listen to you and provide information on a range of health issues, local services, self help and support groups
• put you in touch with appropriate forums for advice and support
• refer you to independent advocacy services if appropriate
• support you if you wish to be involved in shaping our services
• provide you with advice on how to make comments, suggestions and complaints.

PALS will not:

• investigate complaints
• deal with a problem that is currently being investigated under the NHS Complaints Procedure
• pursue a concern that has already exhausted the NHS Complaints Procedure.

Confidentiality

PALS is a confidential service and we will only share information with your consent, unless we believe you or someone else may be at risk or there are concerns about safety.

We want to assure you that raising concerns will not harm or prejudice the care that you, or the person you care for, will receive.

Information regarding enquiries will be recorded on a database. This will be in accordance with the Data Protection Act.

How to contact PALS

Telephone

Freephone 0800 587 4997
(When the office is unattended a confidential answerphone service is provided. If an interpreter is needed, one will be arranged for you.)

Email

dhc.pals@nhs.net

Post

Patient Advice and Liaison Service
Dorset HealthCare
Sentinel House
4-6 Nuffield Industrial Estate
Poole
Dorset BH17 0RB

In person

Every service in the Trust has a local PALS representative available to help you. You can ask to speak to the local PALS representative when you are visiting one of our healthcare sites. If they are not available or you wish to speak to someone who does not work as part of the hospital/team, you can ask a member of staff to contact the PALS coordinator for you.

Other Dorset PALS teams

Dorset County Hospital 

0800 7838058

complaints@dchft.nhs.uk

University Hospitals Dorset

0300 019 8499

patientexperienceteam@uhd.nhs.uk