What is whistleblowing?
While you’re working with us you might become aware of something happening in the surgery that puts you, your colleagues or our patients at risk. If it is in the public interest to know about, you might want to ‘blow the whistle’. Generally these are systemic issues in our management or processes rather than individual wrongdoing. For example, if our procedure for collecting samples from patients was not compliant with infection control guidance and so puts staff at risk.
If you are concerned about any wrongdoing that has happened in the past, is happening now, or might happen in the future, you should raise these concerns so they are dealt with properly, and any harm is prevented from happening or happening again.
Will I be protected if I raise a concern?
The short answer is yes. Whistleblowing is important to prevent wrongdoing, to minimise costs and risks and hold organisations accountable for their actions.
As a whistleblower you’re protected by law - you can’t be treated unfairly or lose your job because you ‘blow the whistle’. If any person is victimising or harassing you because you have raised a concern this may result in disciplinary action.
More information can be found on the Gov.uk website.
The whistleblowing process
1️⃣ Raising a concern
Most speaking up happens through conversations with your Line Manager, where issues are raised and resolved quickly. You can also raise a concern with a member of the management team: the Operations Director, the Strategy Director, or one/both of the Partners. If telling one of these people is not appropriate, you can tell a different member of the management team.
You can raise a concern anonymously if you’d like, but we might not be able to investigate this concern properly if you haven’t given all the information that we need. You can request confidentiality and we will make every effort to protect your identity.
If you don’t think that it is appropriate to raise a concern directly with us (anonymously or not), you can make a disclosure to Protect, the CQC, NHS England or NHS Counter Fraud Authority.
To speak up about a specific member of staff you can also contact the relevant professional body, such as the GMC, NMC, Health & Care Professions Council, or General Pharmaceutical Council.
2️⃣ Investigating the concern
After you raise a concern there might be an investigation, and you might be asked to attend as a witness. You’ll need to explain what you believe is the problem. However, you don’t need to prove the wrongdoing that you’re saying has occurred or is likely to occur, you can simply raise a reasonable suspicion.
Depending on the concern raised, it might not be possible to find an immediate solution, but your concerns will be investigated as quickly as is reasonably possible.
3️⃣ The outcome
After the investigation you’ll be notified of the outcome (that is any action that has been taken) as long as this doesn’t breach confidentiality.
If you can’t be told the outcome of the investigation because it would breach confidentiality, then you’ll be told when the investigation is finished and that action has been taken (although you won’t be told the details of this action).
🙋♂️ Appeals
If you feel that some factors have been overlooked or not considered in the decision making, you can raise this with the appropriate official organisation or regulatory body. If you’re still dissatisfied with the outcome you have the right to express your concerns to the relevant Prescribed Person designated by the Public Interest Disclosure (Prescribed Persons) Order 2014.
You can make such a disclosure to Protect, the CQC, NHS England or NHS Counter Fraud Authority if raising the concern within the Practice has been unsuccessful.