Duty of Candour

Duty of Candour is a legal and ethical obligation placed on all registered care providers in Wales. It means we must be open and transparent with people who use our services and with their families when things go wrong.

What we commit to

• We will tell you promptly and honestly if something has gone wrong with your care.
• We will apologise sincerely and without conditions.
• We will explain to the best of our ability what happened and why.
• We will tell you what we are doing to prevent it from happening again.
• We will provide whatever support we reasonably can.
• We will never retaliate against anyone who raises a concern or asks for an explanation.

Our process

Whenever a significant incident occurs that affects a service user including unexpected harm, a medication error, a fall or a safeguarding concern our Registered Manager will:

Our duty of candour applies equally to all staff. Any member of our team is supported and encouraged to raise concerns without fear of blame or detriment.

Whistleblowing: Public Interest Disclosure

We take all concerns raised by staff, volunteers, contractors and others very seriously. If you work with or for 3ripple Health and believe that something unlawful, unsafe or unethical is occurring, you are encouraged and protected by law to speak up.

Who can raise a concern?

Anyone who works with or for 3ripple Health including employees, agency workers, volunteers and contractors can raise a protected disclosure under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (as amended).

How to raise a concern

• Speak directly to your line manager or the Registered Manager.
• If you are uncomfortable raising the concern internally, you may contact the Care Inspectorate Wales directly as our designated Prescribed Body: 0300 7900 126 / www.careinspectorate.wales.
• For serious financial or criminal matters, you may also contact the relevant regulatory authority.

Our promise to you

• Every concern raised will be taken seriously and investigated promptly.
• You will be kept informed of progress where it is safe and appropriate to do so.
• You will not face any detriment for raising a concern in good faith.
• Confidentiality will be maintained wherever possible.

Our full Whistleblowing Policy is available to all staff in our Staff Handbook. If you are an external party and wish to raise a concern about our services, please see our Complaints page or contact the Care Inspectorate Wales directly.

Quality and continuous improvement

In addition to our statutory duties, we commit to:

• Reviewing our policies and procedures at least annually.
• Listening to feedback from service users and families at every care review.
• Acting on findings from CIW inspections promptly.
• Celebrating and sharing good practice across our team.

Our most recent CIW inspection report is available on the CIW website.