Welcome to this course

A complaint has arrived, or you want to be ready for the day one does. Either way, how you respond in the hours and weeks that follow matters enormously, often more than the substance of the complaint itself.

Most complaints are resolved quietly and never go any further. But a poorly handled response can turn a minor concern into a formal claim, an escalation to your regulator, or a fitness to practise investigation. The difference is rarely the original event. It is how the professional responded to it. This course teaches you to respond in the way that resolves complaints rather than inflaming them.

It is calm, practical, and step by step. It walks you from the moment a complaint lands, through understanding it, writing a response, reaching a resolution, and learning from it, so that you know exactly what to do rather than reacting from stress.

By the end of this course you will be able to

  1. Recognise what a complaint is, and respond well in the vital first days
  2. Understand a complaint fully before you respond to it
  3. Write a response that is clear, complete, and appropriately candid
  4. Handle the apology question correctly, without admitting liability
  5. Work through local resolution, escalation, and regulator involvement
  6. Turn a complaint into genuine learning, and look after yourself in the process

Who this course is for

This course is for all UK registered healthcare professionals across the eight regulators. It is directly useful if a complaint has been made against you and you need to respond, and it is valuable preparation if one has not, because the professional who already knows how to handle a complaint responds far better than one learning under stress. It applies whether the complaint came from a patient, a relative, a colleague, or an employer, and whether it arrived informally or through a formal procedure.

How this course is organised

Five modules, four knowledge checks, and a final 10-question assessment. Score 80% to unlock your certificate.

  • Module 1 covers what to do when a complaint first arrives
  • Module 2 is about understanding the complaint fully before responding
  • Module 3 teaches you how to write the response itself
  • Module 4 covers resolution, escalation, and regulator involvement
  • Module 5 is about learning from the complaint and looking after yourself

Total time: approximately 2 hours, worth 2 CPD hours. Self-paced, progress saved as you go.

Templates and resources

  • A complaint response structure template
  • A complaint action checklist for the first days
  • A reflective note template for learning and revalidation