Service Charter

Our Commitment to Service: Share your thoughts

Providing excellent service is a key part of our Strategic Plan. We aim to make sure our service is easy to use for everyone in Ontario and to give people the information they need to understand and navigate the complaints process.

Background

Patient Ombudsman’s role is to review and resolve certain health care complaints. We work with both the person making the complaint and the health care organization to learn what happened and suggest what can be done to make it right, which may look like an apology, an updated policy, or staff training.

We know that some concerns about the health care system are outside of our role and when that happens, we try to connect you with someone who can help.

We also know that we may not be able to achieve the outcome someone is looking for. No matter the result, our goal is to always provide a fair and unbiased review of your complaint.

Updated Commitment to Service

Our Commitment to Service explains what you can expect from us, and what we expect from you. It helps everyone understand how we work and what “good service” looks like. We work best when:

• We have been clear with people about what we can and cannot do

• We receive information in a timely way

• Everyone treats each other with respect

We are updating our Commitment to Service to make sure it reflects our values and helps us provide the best service possible.

Our previous commitment (see the Service Charter below) had two versions: one for the public and one for health organizations. This new draft brings everything together in one Commitment to Service for everyone who works with us: patients, long-term care residents, and caregivers making complaints, and health care organizations working with us to resolve those complaints.

Your Feedback

The Commitment to Service is meant to clearly explain what you can expect from us, and what we expect from you. We’d like your feedback to make sure it’s clear and easy to understand.

Please review this new Commitment to Service and share your feedback.

 

 

Previous Service Charter

To the patients and caregivers who come to us with their complaints
We will:	We expect you will:
Make sure that our service is easy to access Respect your experience Listen to your complaint and concerns Explain what we can do to help Direct you to the right place if we can’t help Seek a fair resolution to your complaint Keep you informed and communicate our decisions clearly Welcome your feedback so we can improve	First try to formally resolve your complaint with the hospital, long-term care home, or home and community care support service that you’re complaining about Share all important facts and information about your complaint Recognize we are impartial and are looking for fairness from all sides Contact us with questions about your complaint Treat us with respect   Let us know how we could improve your experience with us

 

To the health sector organizations (public hospitals, long-term care homes, and home care) we receive complaints about
We will:	We expect you will:
Clearly explain our role, process and expectations Ensure you have a meaningful opportunity to resolve the complaint Work with you to set reasonable timelines Be thorough and fair in our review Ask for specific information (policies, evidence & documentation) Keep you informed and explain our decisions Be open to innovative and creative solutions	Respect our staff, process and timelines Explain your process and decisions Provide the information we ask for Contact us with any questions or concerns Respond to our suggestions and recommendations Let us know how we can improve your experience with us