Feedback and complaints management policy

Purpose

Enhanced Lifestyles’ is committed to our customers, their families and other external parties with a sound understanding of their right to be listened to, and to provide feedback on the services sought or undertaken by Enhanced Lifestyles.

Enhanced Lifestyles recognises feedback is one of the best ways to identify problems with the services we deliver and fosters a culture that values and learns from feedback and complaints.

Scope

This policy applies to all feedback, compliments, suggestions and complaints received from customers, their families and other external parties about Enhanced Lifestyles’ services.

This policy does not apply to any work-related grievance or complaints/feedback from one employee to another which is to be addressed using the applicable Human Resource (HR) process.

Where feedback or a complaint is related to an incident, the protocols of the Incident Management Policy and Procedure will apply.

Context

If customers, their families and other external parties are dissatisfied with services being provided, they have the right to present those views, both formally and informally, and to seek to have the situation remedied.

A positive attitude towards complainants and a commitment to resolving complaints will create a noticeable improvement in Customer satisfaction.

Enhanced Lifestyles uses the Australian Open Disclosure Framework to provide an environment of open disclosure for managing and resolving Customer complaints.

Risk

The absence of a Feedback and Complaints Management Policy puts Enhanced Lifestyles at risk of not upholding the rights of its customers and employees and not being compliant with the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 (the Act) and National Disability Insurance Scheme (Complaints Management and Resolution) Rules 2018 (the Rules).

Policy Detail

Enhanced Lifestyles will:

give all feedback/complaints equal consideration without prejudice;
afford the customer procedural fairness by providing the customer with the opportunity to present their complaint in a way that is understood and that , where required, the customer is supported to express the details of the complaint in their own words;
keep the system of making a complaint or providing feedback simple and provide assistance and support as required;
ensure access to the independent advocates in accordance with Providing Customer Advocacy and Support Policy;
advise the complainant and all effected customers of their right to submit a complaint to the NDIS Commission or other appropriate body and provide any support required to do so;
treat all parties with respect, recognising that the issue raised is important to the person reporting it;
maintain confidentiality of parties involved, keeping identifying information of the complainant private while working with those directly involved in the matter and its resolution;
provide a process for anonymous feedback and complaints to be submitted and protect the anonymity of any complainant who wishes to remain anonymous;
resolve any issues raised in feedback or complaints, where possible, to the satisfaction of the complainant;
respond to and resolve all feedback and complaints in a timely manner and keep involved parties informed of all decisions made and actions undertaken in relation to the feedback or complaint;
keep parties to the feedback or complaint informed of progress in reaching a resolution;
ensure all employees, service users, members, other external parties and Board members are aware of the complaints policy and procedures;
ensure that a complainant, or customer affected by the feedback or complaint, is not penalised or adversely affected as a result of providing feedback or a complaint; and
ensure that feedback and complaint data (both positive and negative) is recorded and considered in organisational reviews and incorporated into the continuous improvement process.

Principles