Zero Tolerance Policy

As a Practice, we are very aware that visiting your GP can at times, be stressful and concerning for patients. Delays in obtaining appointments and delays in surgery times, due to unforeseen emergency appointments, can also add to these concerns.

We always strive to meet patient expectation and deliver the highest standards of healthcare and for the vast majority of our patients, we achieve this, despite the steadily increasing demand for services that exists today within the NHS and closures and changes to services in the local area.

Our staff come to work to care for others, and it is important for all members of the public and our staff to be treated with dignity and respect at all times – this includes bullying behaviour if you do not agree with our policies and procedures. Our staff have the right to undertake their job without fear of abuse or being attacked. There are problems across the NHS with staff retention and we are working hard to create an environment where people want to work. We are also working hard to give our patients a consistent service which we are able to achieve in line with national guidance.

In line with the rest of the NHS and to ensure this is fully observed we have instigated a Dignity at Work and Zero Tolerance policy, whereby

• bullying behaviour
• Swearing and shouting 
• rude behaviour both verbally and in writing
• excessive demands made on our services
  
• generally uncooperative and unreasonable behaviour, e.g. persistent failure to attend appointments
• Vexatious behaviour, eg a patient who continually makes complaints without
  justification
  
• aggressive or violent behaviour towards our staff

will not be tolerated under any circumstances.

The practice fully supports the NHS Zero Tolerance Policy. The aim of this policy is to tackle the increasing problem of violence against staff working in the NHS and ensures that doctors and their staff have a right to care for others without fear of being attacked or abused.

We understand that ill patients do not always act in a reasonable manner and will take this into consideration when trying to deal with a misunderstanding or complaint. We ask you to treat your doctors and their staff courteously and act reasonably.

All incidents will be followed up and you will be sent a formal warning after a second incident or removed from the practice list after a third incident if your behaviour has been unreasonable.

However, aggressive behaviour, be it violent or verbal abusive, will not be tolerated and may result in you being removed from the Practice list and, in extreme cases, the Police will be contacted if an incident is taking place and the patient is posing a threat to staff or other patients.

Removal from the Practice List

A good patient-doctor relationship, based on mutual respect and trust, is the cornerstone of good patient care. The removal of patients from our list is an exceptional and rare event and is a last resort in an impaired patient-practice relationship. When trust has irretrievably broken down, it is in the patient’s interest, just as much as that of The Surgery, that they should find a new practice. An exception to this is on immediate removal on the grounds of violence e.g. when the Police are involved.

Removing other members of the household

In rare cases, however, because of the possible need to visit patients at home it may be necessary to terminate responsibility for other members of the family or the entire household. The prospect of visiting patients where a relative who is no longer a patient of the practice by virtue of their unacceptable behaviour resides, or being regularly confronted by the removed patient, may make it too difficult for the practice to continue to look after the whole family. This is particularly likely where the patient has been removed because of violence or threatening behaviour and keeping the other family members could put doctors or their staff at risk.