Local health services

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Local health services

If you are looking for a doctor, dentist, optician or pharmacist or want to know more about local hospitals, community services or clinics

• Find a local health service on the NHS Choices website 
• Contact NHS Direct
• Get details of out of hours GPs, pharamacies and dentists

For more information on specific health problems and conditions go to the city's Information Prescriptions pages

Health service providers

Local health services are provided by a number of organisations in Brighton & Hove. For further information about the main organisations, follow the links below:

• NHS Sussex
• Sussex Community NHS Trust
• South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Trust
• Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
• Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust

Independent advocacy, comments and complaints

Each health trust has an obligation to deal with complaints and provide information about their services. This is provided through patient and public involvement forums and PALS (patient advice and liaison services).

The independent complaints advocacy service (ICAS) provides independent advice and support to anyone wanting to make a complaint about NHS services.

ICAS - Independent Complaints Advocacy Service
Ground Floor
7 Vale Avenue
Tunbridge Wells
Kent TN1 1DJ
Telephone (01892) 540490

email: tunbridgew.icas@seap.org.uk

A new local ICAS service will take over this role from the 1 April 2013.

Healthwatch is an independent body. Healthwatch provides a watchdog function to ensure local health care services are running effectively.

Patient and Public Involvement Forums

Whilst the Patients Advisory Forums (PAF) are no longer running, two sub-groups are continuing to meet to discuss issues relating to local health services about:

• physical and sensory disability
• mental health, learning disability and caring

for more information contact:

Patient & Public Involvement Administrator
Brighton General Hospital
FREEPOST BR 505
Tel: (01273) 242026

Patients Advice and Liaison Service (PALS)

The Patients Advice and Liasion Service (PALS) has been set up to support patients, their carers and families who have any problems or need information while they are receiving NHS care. PALS will also make recommendations for improvements so that local NHS services can provide the best possible care. 

You can find out more about PALS on the NHS Sussex website

Further help and advice

If you are unhappy with the outcome of a complaint investigation, you can ask the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman to review your complaint.

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman
11-13^th floor
Millbank Tower
London SW1P 4QP
Tel: 0345 015 4033