DISGRUNTLED patients are bombarding the NHS in Scotland with record numbers of complaints as more than 800 a month raise grievances about poor treatment.
Figures show almost 10,000 complaints were made about NHS Scotland's hospital and community health services in 2010/11, the highest number for 10 years.
The Scottish NHS data was referenced in a new General Medical Council (GMC) report which revealed complaints about doctors have hit a record high with patients more prepared to raise concerns about their treatment.
The number of complaints to the GMC, which oversees doctors practicing medicine in the UK, increased by 23% from 7153 in 2010 to 8781 in 2011, continuing a pattern which has been rising since 2007.
The Scottish figures showed there were 9980 complaints raised in 2010/11 across NHS professions – a 26% rise over 10 years. Some 36% of the complaints were about treatment with 34% about staff. While the GMC said the rise in complaints does not mean medical standards are falling, the likelihood the medical regulators will investigate a British doctor increased from one in 68 in 2010 to one in 64 in 2011.
Among the UK complaints there was a significant rise in concerns about how doctors interacted with patients. Allegations about poor communication increased by 69% in a year and protests about a lack of respect rose by 45%.
The report revealed representations about care being prejudiced by a complaint had risen six-fold to 28 while there was a 64% rise in objections over a failure to respond to concerns and an inability to provide appropriate information.
There was a 23% rise in complaints about verbal abuse towards patients and a 39% increase in accusations over staff being rude. Complaints about medical staff being dishonest with patients rose by 54%, while grievances citing a failure to respect patients' dignity rose by 51%.
The Patients' Association, the watchdog that aims to tackle causes of poor care, said it was particularly concerned about rises in complaints about communication and lack of respect.
Katherine Murphy, chief executive of the Patients' Association, said: "Patients have the right to be well informed, treated with dignity and be part of shared decisions about their treatment. However, evidence from our helpline supports this report in making clear that for too many patients this is simply not happening.
"Patients often tell our helpline they are not receiving the compassion, dignity and respect which they deserve and are entitled to under the NHS constitution."
The GMC's second annual State of Medical Education and Practice in the UK report, which presents a profile of the medical profession over the last year and outlines challenges for the future, used the NHS Scotland data to show complaints about nurses in Scotland exceeded those about doctors, unlike the case in England and Wales.
The report says that while in Scotland, the Government has committed to increase the NHS resource budget by £249 million, giving a total budget of £11.6 billion in 2012-13, higher inflation means there was a 1.4% cut in real terms from 2010-11.
The GMC said doctors in Scotland were more likely to be referred for allegations about health than in the rest of the UK. Their analysis showed doctors working in Scotland accounted for 8% of all allegations yet they accounted for 12% of all UK health-related complaints.
The report said: "This may in part simply reflect the poorer health of the overall population in Scotland, with its lower life expectancy at birth and higher rates of some lifestyle diseases including, for example, alcoholism."
A Scottish Government spokeswoman said: "We want all patients to be confident they will get the best possible care and treatment from the NHS in Scotland and where improvements can be made, it's vital that lessons are learned quickly.
"The Patients' Rights Act, which came into force in April, marks an important step forward in giving patients more say in their health service. It aims to ensure patients' rights and entitlements are more widely understood and used, including reinforcing existing rights to make a complaint and strengthening support for patients throughout the complaints process."
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