Complaints & Grievance Procedure
If I have a complaint, what should I do first?
If you have a complaint or a concern there are some steps you can take to help us help you.
Go Local First
Many concerns can be resolved quickly and easily by speaking with local staff. Give the service a chance to fix the problem if you think they can.
Act Quickly
Please tell us about the problem as soon as possible. The earlier you tell us the quicker we can act.
Make your complaint clear
Write down everything relevant to the issue in the order in which things happened. Make sure you include a description of what happened, dates, phone calls, letters or meetings. Let us know the outcome you are seeking or the action you want Breakaway to take.
Complaint/Grievance Officer
If your complaint grievance is not resolved after meeting with the Facilitator or if you feel for any reason that you cannot speak with the Facilitator then the matter should be brought before the Management Committee.
Your Complaint/Grievance Officers are Mrs Dawn Hyland and Mr David Waldron whose contact details are available by phoning the Breakaway Toowoomba Office on 07 4639 5100.
What if I am uncomfortable reporting my complaint to local staff?
If you do not wish to talk about your concerns with local staff or they have not been able to deal with your concerns, you can take your complaint to DSQ's Complaints and Prevention Unit (CPU).
Grievance Process
Breakaway is committed to providing quality services and as such welcomes input from you and your family, and employees on how to improve the service.
All complaints / compliments whether in writing or verbal, will be noted and acted on accordingly. You and / or your representative will be kept in formed of the progress and outcome of the investigation.
You may wish to:
- Discuss your comment/concern directly with the Support Worker, Facilitator, or Co-ordinator
- Complete a Compliment or Complaint form included with your information package
- Talk to an independent person
Anonymous complaints will be investigated however the outcome may be limited due to the anonymity of the complaint.
If you are unhappy with a decision that has been made, or how you have been treated, or how Breakaway Toowoomba Inc. operates, you have a right to make a complaint or grievance.
Grievance Procedure
- Upon receipt of a grievance / complaint the consumer is advised of the role of the Client Liaison Officer. This person is appointed by the Management Committee to assist the client.
- Should the client wish they may raise a grievance with the Support Facilitator, Support Co-ordinator or the Chairperson. A response to the grievance is to be given to the client within two (2) days. If the client is not satisfied with the response to his/ her problem, they should put the grievance in writing.
- The written grievance is referred to the Facilitator and an action plan developed within seven (7) working days. The action plan will state actions to be taken, person responsible for action and the date action to be achieved by.
- If within the nominated date, the grievance has not been resolved:
- The client or advocate may talk to the Client Liaison Officer about your grievance and they will raise it at the next Management Committee Meeting
- From the time of contacting Client Liaison Officer or the Facilitator, until the matter is raised at the next Management Committee Meeting should take no longer then 4 weeks.
- A letter outlining details of the resolution / outcome will be sent to you and a copy kept in the consumer's file.
What if I am still unhappy with the outcome?
If the matter is still unresolved, the client / advocate can contact one of the advocacy agencies detailed below.
Dept of Health & Aged Care-Complaints Unit
Ph: (07) 3360 2765
The Adult Guardian
Ph: (07) 3234 0870
Queensland Aged & Disability Advocacy Inc.
Ph: (07) 3637 6000
Ph: 1800 818 338 (Free call)
Office Of The Public Advocate
Ph: (07) 3224 7424
HACC Area Manager
Ph: 1800 242 636 (Free call)
Disability Services Queensland
Ph: 1800 177 120 (Free call)
