An independent provider in the Berkshire area

3. Mr P complains about the care and treatment the Provider gave his son, Master P, in June 2023. Specifically, he complains the Provider missed clear signs and symptoms of pneumonia which led to sepsis during a 111 call, and at an out of hours GP appointment on 11 June. He says the Provider did not act appropriately on Master P’s symptoms.

4. Very sadly, Master P died on 13 June 2023. This has had a severe impact on Mr P and his family. He explains the impact on them mentally and physically is indescribable.

5. Mr P would like the Provider to make service improvements, apologise and provide a financial remedy.

8. The law says we cannot investigate a complaint where a person has (or had) the option to take legal action, unless we consider this is (or was) unreasonable in the circumstances.

9. We have discussed this with Mr P to understand his circumstances and the outcomes he is seeking. We do not consider whether legal action would succeed but whether it would be a reasonable option to look in to.

10. Mr P explained he came to us in the first instance, as he was advised this was the next step in the process. He was considering whether to take legal action afterwards, depending on our findings.

11. Our law sets out that somebody should take legal action in the first instance, if this is a reasonable option. Mr P told us he is willing to explore this, based on this information about the law.

12. We recognise Mr P is seeking a mix of outcomes, and how important these are to him. As part of this, Mr P is seeking a financial remedy. Legal action may be best placed to look to achieve a more significant financial remedy. We acknowledge he is also seeking service improvements, which may be a byproduct of legal action.

13. We have not currently seen any barriers to Mr P exploring legal action at this stage, and he has acknowledged this is something he would like to do. Based on this, we think it is reasonable.

14. Mr P knows if his circumstances change, legal action is not successful, or it does not achieve all the outcomes he is seeking he can return to us for our consideration at that later stage.

15. We hope we have clearly explained the reasons for our decision, to not consider Mr P’s complaint further at this time. We again reiterate our sincere condolences.

1. We have carefully considered Mr P’s complaint about an independent provider in the Berkshire area (the Provider). We were incredibly sorry to learn about the reasons for Mr P’s complaint. We extend our sincerest condolences for the very sad loss of Mr P’s son. We have decided not to consider this complaint further, as Mr P could pursue legal action on the matter he has brought to us.

2. We acknowledge how important Mr P’s complaint is and thank him for taking the time to contact us. We explain the reasons for our decision below.