Healthwatch Feedback Centre Moderation and Publication Policy

Feedback Centre Moderation and Publishing Policy

Reviews of services via the Healthwatch Lancashire Website Feedback Centre will only be published to the live Feedback Centre once they have been moderated and approved by Healthwatch Lancashire. Any approval or rejection of reviews will send an automated email to the reviewer alerting them of the moderator’s decision. Any alterations or suggested alterations made by Healthwatch Lancashire to visitor reviews will be communicated directly to the reviewer before publishing by email.

Before approving a review, it must:

• Be for an appropriate service– The review must be for a relevant health and social care service in Cumbria, ideally from our list of providers.
• Not include any specific names or dates– The names of healthcare professionals, particularly if the review is a complaint, must not be publicly disclosed online. Any other confidential personal information, like dates of birth or dates of appointments must be removed.
• Not be part of an ongoing investigation– If the review is a complaint that is currently being investigated, it cannot legally be made public until the investigation is concluded. Then the reviewer can be contacted and asked if they would still like to upload their review.
• Be family-friendly– No profanity, threats, prejudiced comments, hate speech, sexually explicit or overly graphic descriptive language, or other content that is not appropriate for our community.
• Not be libellous, slanderous or defamatory– Serious accusations or allegations (including a severe failure in care, neglect, abuse or safeguarding issue) must be investigated prior to approval to ensure they are not unfounded. Once investigated, any issue that would trigger a safeguarding alert is to be forwarded to the relevant safeguarding body (i.e. Police, Adult Social Care).
• Not be from a member of staff or employee of the organisation– our Feedback Centre is only for member of the public who are service users or patients, or for friends and family members of service users or patients, to share their experiences of local health and social care services. Reviews identified as whistleblowing from members of staff (current or ex members of staff) at the service will not be published. Relevant information about whistleblowing and raising concerns will be issued.
• Be age approved– No reviews by children or young persons under the age of 18 can be submitted without parental/carer consent.
• Be complemented by a valid e-mail address– The e-mail address must be correct as there may be a need to contact the reviewer if there is a problem with the review and/or further information is required.