04. How do I find out more about what happened to me?

You should first get a detailed explanation from your doctor or from the healthcare professional who was involved in your treatment. The doctors' professional code of conduct says a doctor should give you an explanation of what happened during your treatment and, if necessary, an apology. But this doesn't always happen, and you might not get all the information you want. If so, there are several other steps you can take.

The NHS complaints procedure
Unless your treatment was private, you can make a complaint using the NHS complaints procedure. If you had your treatment through an NHS Foundation Trust, the Trust may have its own complaints procedure, though this is likely to be similar to the NHS procedure.

You should be able to get details of how to complain from your GP's practice, the clinic or the hospital. If you can, you should put your complaint in writing, and include any questions you want answered. You should make your complaint within six months of your injury. However, a healthcare provider should normally still look at a complaint made after this, particularly if there is a good reason why you could not complain before.

Often complaints take many months to resolve. If you are making a complaint but are also considering legal action, it is very important that you do not wait too long before investigating the possibility of a legal claim. This is because there are strict
time limits. See 'How long do I have to claim compensation?'.

Get your medical records
Ask for copies of your medical records from your doctor or from the hospital or clinic that treated you. You have a legal right to these under the Data Protection Act 1998 (or in some cases, the Access to Health Records Act 1990). You may have to pay up to £50 to get copies of your medical records, including copies of any X-rays and scans you may have had done.

Contact a professional organisation
You may want to complain about an individual doctor or other healthcare professional, for example, because you think they acted unprofessionally or are a danger to other patients. Most healthcare professionals are members of a professional organisation, so you should think about complaining to one of these. There are different organisations for different professions. For example, the General Medical Council (GMC) for doctors, or the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) for nurses, midwives and health visitors. See 'Further help' for details.

If you are complaining because relative has died during or after treatment, contact the coroner. See 'What should I do if a relative has died as a result of a medical accident?'.

Bear in mind that when you make complaint, you might not get an explanation that is as full or as accurate as you would like. To get the best out of a complaints procedure, it is a good idea to get specialist advice.

You can get advice from:

• The Independent Complaints Advocacy Service (ICAS). This has now taken over the complaints role of Community Health Councils in England. In Wales, you can still get advice and help with complaints from the Community Health Councils.
• The Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS). This is based in all NHS trusts, and can help you resolve everyday concerns and problems with NHS care that you do not want to make a formal complaint about.
• Action against Medical Accidents (AvMA). This is a charity that can give you support and medical information to help you make an effective complaint. It can also give you expert legal help if you want to claim compensation.
• Other specialist health organisations. If there is a charity or support group for people with your medical condition, it may be able to offer advice about whether the treatment you received was appropriate.
• Medical libraries and medical websites. If you are confident about dealing with medical terms, medical libraries and websites can give you information to help you prepare your complaint.

Keeping a record
If you think you may have suffered medical accident, it is a good idea to keep a record or diary of everything that happens to you during and after your treatment. This will help if you decide to make a complaint. It will also help your solicitor when investigating your case if you decide to make legal claim.

If you are thinking about taking legal action, you should also keep a record of any extra money you have to spend because of your injury, for example, taxi fares, lost earnings and care costs. Photographs of injuries can sometimes be useful too, especially for legal action. If you are not sure about whether photographs are needed, or if it would be distressing, ask a clinical negligence solicitor for advice.