Complaints and Feedback Policy
MND Queensland is committed to being accountable to all of our stakeholders. We treat all feedback about employees and/or performance as an opportunity to learn and improve our processes.
A complaint is an expression of dissatisfaction made to or about an organisation, related to its products, services or staff where a response or resolution is explicitly or implicitly expected or legally required. 1
Principles
The MND Queensland complaints processes are:
- stakeholder focused - the person offering feedback is at the heart of the process.
- confidential – personal information related to the complaint (including the details of those involved in the complaint) will be confidential and only used for the purposes of addressing the complaint.
- accessible – easily understood and clearly available to all MND Queensland stakeholders via the MND Queensland website.
- impartial, just and fair – objective, evidence-based and proportionate to the circumstances. There will be no victimisation of, or repercussion for any person who makes a complaint.
- timely – we aim to resolve the complaint at the earliest opportunity to the stakeholder’s satisfaction where possible.
- driven by continuous quality improvement – outcomes of complaints are used to identify improvements that can be made to service and performance.
- AS/NZ 10002:2014 Guidelines for Complaint Management in Organizations (as amended)
POLICY & PROCEDURE
1.5.1 Policy
Any person who makes a complaint to MND Queensland will be treated with courtesy and respect. They will be dealt with in a fair and unbiased manner and will not be subject to victimisation or repercussions as a result of lodging a complaint. In return, MND Queensland expects complainants to communicate their concerns fairly and appropriately. MND Queensland reserves the right to withdraw or modify its complaints process if complainants show unreasonable conduct.
An anonymous complaint will be treated as Feedback and treated with the same Principles as a complaint. MND Queensland will endeavour to act on and improve when an anonymous complaint is received, however there will be no commitment to act, given the difficulty of anonymous complaint verification and communication. All complaints will be registered in the centralised Complaints Register. The register allows for recording and tracking of the outcomes of complaints. The register is reviewed on a regular basis by the CEO with a view to identifying recurrent themes, systemic issues, risks or organisational processes that need to be addressed.
Complaints assist MND Queensland to learn from what we do and how we do it. To this end, complaint processes will include an appropriate assessment and reflection on lessons learned and quality improvement to mitigate the risk of recurrence. This information may not necessarily be provided to the complainant or made public. If an investigation of a complaint determines that the service, actions or failure to act by individuals or the organisation has in some way contributed to the complaint being substantiated, MND Queensland will take whatever action is appropriate including but not limited to:
- Admit the mistake occurred and offer a sincere and meaningful apology
- Reconsider a decision
- Amend or retract documentation/files
- Change policies or practices to prevent recurrence
- Take action to modify the behaviour of the staff member or organisational representative who was the subject of the complaint
1.5.2 Procedure
MND Queensland recognises there are different types of complaints. These include:
- Grievance – between organisational personnel including staff and volunteers.
- Related party complaints – related to MND Queensland’s support services or service providers.
- Third party complaints – complaints from an external stakeholder about the standards of service, actions or lack of action by MND Queensland, its staff, representatives or volunteers.
Different types of complaints may require a variation in process and differing levels of formality at different times. Whatever the type of complaint though the procedures will adhere to the same principles:
- Respect for the complainant
- Objective investigation
- Acknowledgement (by next business day), and reliable and timely communication throughout the process
- Priority for resolution between parties where this is possible
- Commitment to procedural fairness and natural justice
- Documentation including actions, resolution and learnings
- Review, learning and quality improvement from every complaint
1.5.2.1 Publishing the complaints handling procedure
The MND Queensland Complaints and Feedback Policy should be accessible to all stakeholders and Clients and easily found in a variety of formats.
Therefore, this policy will be advertised in the following ways:
- A link to the policy will be on the front page MND Queensland website and be clearly labelled Complaints and Feedback Policy.
- The form provided on the website will be clearly labelled “making a complaint”.
- Provided to and discussed with Clients during orientation/on-boarding.
- Detailed in Client Service Agreements.
1.5.2.2 Lodging a complaint
To lodge a complaint, MND Queensland provides a variety of ways for complainants to make contact:
NDIS funded participants may choose to take their complaint directly to the NDIS Commission who can be contacted on 1800 035 544.
1.5.2.3 Unresolved Complaints
Unresolved complaints will be escalated for further investigation and attempts at resolution.
If a complaint made by an NDIS funded Client cannot be resolved internally, the complainant may be referred to the external agency, listed below:
NDIS Commission
- Ph: 1800 035 544 (free call from landlines) Interpreters can be arranged
- National Relay Service and ask for 1800 035 544
- Completing a complaint contact form
https://forms.business.gov.au/smartforms/servlet/SmartForm.html?formCode=PRD00-OCF
Complaints and Feedback Form
Click here to download a complaints and feedback form that you can fill in and email back to head-mndservices@mndaq.org.au or you may use the below website form to give anonymous feedback or to make an anonymous complaint.