Calls for more resources for health ombudsman

MPs on the Health Select Committee want the Government to completely reform the position of health ombudsman, after a report found that only 300 out of 15,500 complaints referred to her were investigated.

The role of the Health Service Ombudsman, currently held by Ann Abraham, needs to be expanded, the MPs recommended. Abraham has already announced plans to retire later this year.

The committee’s report found that in 2009/10, complaints about NHS services increased by 13.4% to 101,077 – the biggest rise for 12 years. The majority of those complaints were dealt with by individual trusts, but 15,579 were referred to the ombudsman, of which only 346 were investigated.

The ombudsman has to believe there is a prospect of “a worthwhile outcome”, that a person had suffered injustice or hardship as a result of poor service or maladministration.

The MPs said: “The legal and operational framework of the Ombudsman's office should be reviewed to make it effective for this wider purpose.”