Managing complaints post-CMA

One of the key remedies relates to how practices manage client complaints. Reading the pet owner feedback from the initial CMA informal review, it’s clear there is some deficit in resolution of client complaints, with clients saying they feel they have limited or no recourse for redress when something goes wrong. In recognition of this and best practice in many other professional service industries, the CMA has decided to codify how client complaints are managed. There are two components of this, a standardised in-house complaints procedure, and an obligation on practices to participate in mediation. 

Although many of you say your practice already has a complaints system which fits the CMA’s proposed requirements, we know that ensuring your practice is compliant is still a bit of a daunting prospect. With that in mind, I’m pleased to be chairing a session at BVA Live: Managing client complaints post-CMA, what do you need to know? on Thursday 11 June in the BVA Business, Careers & Debates theatre at 2pm. I’ll be joined by Gavin Durston, Director of Thrums Vets who will share how his practice manages the range of complaints seen at a large mixed practice; and Jennie Jones from the Veterinary Client Mediation Service (VCMS), who will discuss what mediation is, how VCMS works and what results VCMS achieve in terms of resolving disputes between practices and their clients. 

Having managed a large hospital practice for several years I have direct personal experience of managing client complaints and, while I appreciate many vets find them challenging to deal with, I found complaints can be valuable. However, this wasn't always the case, particularly before I started managing complaints myself.

My altered attitude towards complaints in part came about from an insight one of my veterinary mentors shared with me; “Rob, complaints aren’t a nightmare as you put it, they are a gift. Complaints give us a perspective on what we do as a practice that we otherwise would not appreciate. Even in the most spurious complaint there is often an insight we can use to improve what we do.”  

This was great advice to positively reframe complaints, and I used to do something that sounds a little odd on the back of this advice: whenever I had a written complaint, I would go into a consulting room, stand on the client side of the room and read the complaint. Then I would ask myself a simple question: “In similar circumstances would I complain?”. I think this is important because it gives you the opportunity to try and take yourself out of a ‘vet’ mindset and take an impartial view of the complaint. This then enabled me to take a more constructive approach to resolving it. 

As my mentor said “complaints are a gift”; using this perspective is something that might help you if you are responsible for managing complaints at your practice. 

The full BVA Live programme is available at bvalive.vetshow.com. There is still time for BVA members to claim a fully funded ticket – find out more here.