Statement of Intent
Te Hauora o Ngāti Hauā is committed to providing a quality service to, and on behalf of whānau, hapū and iwi of Ngāti Hauā.
A complaints procedure has been developed to ensure practices within the Organisation are fair, appropriate and consistant with the Code of Practice and underlying values of Organisation.
Where services have not met your particular needs, and/so staff have been unsatisfactory in performing specific tasks, we encourage you to lodge a formal complaint, whereby the matter will be dealt with in a respectful, timely and professional manner.
Complaints must be lodged in writing. Complainants must provide contact details to enable a formal response when and if required.
Receipt and Classification
(i) Complaint will be received and forwarded to the General Manager. In the event that complaints are related to this person, the complain will be forwarded to the CEO.
(ii) Complaints will be registered and acknowledged within 5 working days of receipt.
(iii) All records, correspondence and information relating to the complaint must be securely filed and stored.
Considering the Complaint
Complaints will be received will be considered in relation to the following classifications ie;
Minor Complaint: These are complaints that have no ethical, professional or legal obligations by the agency or staff members involved. These complains can usually be dealt with immediately and present no perceived harm to the agency or clients involved.
All minor complaints will be dealt with by the General Manager.
Intermediate Complaint: These are complaints that could impact on the ethical, professional and/or legal obligations of the Organisation. The impact may be negative but not of a nature to cause serious harm or distress to the agency or the person(s) involved.
All intermediate complaints will be dealt with by the General Manager, but must be reported to the CEO as soon as reasonably possible.
Serious Complaint: These are considered to be complaints that jeopardise the ethical, professional and/or legal responsibilities of the Organisation. The impact on the agency and/or the person(s) involved is considered to be abusive, unsafe practice, unethical, culturally insensitive, illegal and /or unprofessional.
All serious complaints will be dealt with by the CEO and reported to the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees as soon as is reasonably possible.
Resolving Complaints
(i) All complaints will be investigated. The level and degree of the investigation will be related to the nature and classification of the complaint.
(ii) All relevant information will be recorded, collated, filed and stored securely including all correspondence and meeting minutes related to the case.
Minor Complaint
(iii) Minor complaints may be dealt with by a letter or hui which may result in an apology, a clarification of our position, a minor change in the way services are provided or staff act.
Intermediate Complaint
(iv) Intermediate complaints will be responded to in writing although a meeting with key stakeholders may also be held. The action taken in resolving the issue will need to consider the actual and/or potential impact or harm to the agency and person(s) involved. This may result in the following responses:
a) Written and/or verbal warning to staff member(s) involved.
b) Formal apology from the Organisation or staff involved.
c) Acceptance by complainant of action taken.
d) An apology received from the complainant.
e) A change in agency policy, service delivery, staff actions and/or a formal review of the above.
Serious Complaint
(v) Serious complaints will be responded to in writing. The nature of the complaint may require legal and/or professional consultation. The action taken to resolve the complaint could include; referral to counselling, involvement of an external mediator, formal warning, dis-employment f staff members and/or legal action.