Mrs X complained that Hywel Dda University Health Board failed to provide regular monitoring of her ophthalmic condition. Mrs X also complained that the Health Board had not responded to her letter to the Consultant and found the follow-up responses to her email to be inadequate.
The Ombudsman found that the Health Board failed to respond to Mrs X’s correspondence or formally investigate her concerns. The Ombudsman said this caused uncertainty and frustration for Mrs X. The Ombudsman decided to settle the complaint without an investigation.
The Ombudsman sought and gained the Health Board’s agreement to, within 3 weeks, write to Mrs X with an apology and an explanation for the oversight in not logging her concerns as a formal complaint. The Health Board also agreed to contact Mrs X to establish the scope of her complaint and conduct an investigation into her concerns under the PTR procedure.