1 February 2021
All health and social care services in Scotland have a ‘duty of candour’. This is a legal requirement which means that when things go wrong and mistakes happen, the people affected understand what has happened, receive an apology, and that organisations learn how to improve for the future.
An important part of this duty is that we provide an annual report about the duty of candour in our services. This short report describes how our care service has operated the duty of candour during the time between 1 April 2020 and 1 February 2021.
We hope you find this report useful.
1. How many incidents happened to which the duty of candour applies?
In the last year, there have been no incidents to which the duty of candour applied.
2. Information about our policies and procedures
Where something has happened that triggers the Duty of Candour, our staff will report this to the Head of Operations, or another member of the Senior Management Team (SMT). That senior person has responsibility for ensuring that the Duty of Candour procedure is followed. They will record the incident and report, if necessary, to the Care Inspectorate and other relevant bodies.
If an incident happens, the senior manager and staff will set up a learning review. This allows everyone involved to review what happened and identify changes for the future and actions required.
All new staff learn about the Duty of Candour at induction and through our Employee Handbook. We know that serious mistakes can be distressing for staff, as well as for those people who use service, and their families. We have support in place for our staff if they have been affected by a Duty of Candour incident.
If you would like more information about our duty of candour policy, please contact us at info@upmo.org
Claire Turnbull
Head of Operations
