Private Patients and the Ombudsman Gap

What the ombudsmen say

• England: the PHSO says by law it cannot look into privately funded healthcare.
• Northern Ireland: wholly private patients cannot use the Public Services Ombudsman.
• If a private provider is not in an independent scheme, there may be no independent review at all.

What fills the gap

• Independent complaint schemes such as HSCAMP, free for patients whose clinic is a member.
• In Scotland, Healthcare Improvement Scotland can assess complaints about independent clinics.
• The Dental Complaints Service for private dentistry.

Check before you book

PHIN advises patients to check whether a provider belongs to an external complaints scheme before choosing it.