An important part of the mandate of the Office of the Ombudsman
is to ensure that public agencies are acting fairly. One aspect
of fairness is the quality of service provided by the public
agency. When members of the public are unhappy about the service
they receive, they naturally look for the most effective means
of addressing the issue. This often involves contact with external
agencies, such as MLA constituency offices, cabinet ministers,
the media, the Information and Privacy Commissioner and, of
course, this office. In many cases, however, these complaints
could have been resolved without the involvement of an external
agency if an internal process existed to respond to these complaints.
If public agencies do not have appropriate internal mechanisms
for responding to complaints, this important opportunity may
be lost.
An internal complaint mechanism (ICM) gives agencies a second
chance to provide quality service. It allows them the opportunity
to correct errors before external agencies, politicians or
the media become involved. At the same time, data gleaned
from complaints may highlight opportunities to improve policies,
programs or service delivery.
The purpose of this document is to offer some guidance for
developing an ICM. This document will also identify and discuss
some of the factors you may wish to consider in designing
a system that will best meet the needs of the people you serve
and the needs of your organization.
Our office recognizes that public agencies vary considerably
in size and scope. Large agencies may have the resources to
create separate complaint departments. Very small agencies
may be limited to having front-line staff handle complaints.
Accordingly, we have identified six basic elements of an ICM
which are fundamental to its success and are a necessary part
of every ICM. These fundamental elements apply regardless
of the size of your agency or its budget. They are discussed
throughout this Fundamentals section.
We have also identified a number of other factors that may
affect the choices you make in designing an ICM. These are
discussed under the heading "Other
Considerations."
Lastly, under the heading "A
Final Check" we have provided a checklist to assist
you in ensuring that you have captured each of the fundamental
elements identified by our office.
Reprinted with permission from the British Columbia Office of
the Ombudsman.
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