BS: Public Services Ombudsman

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: jacqui.c
Date: 05 Sep 07 - 02:58 PM

Frustrated - have you thought about consulting a solicitor or going to the Small Claims Court. It's surprising how that route concentrates the attention!

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 05 Sep 07 - 03:58 AM

I think the Spam posting just above this one shows just why un-named posters are erased and why they should be.

Sorry it was you this time Peace, I've lost erudite and illuminating posts to the OEC (Over Eager Clone) before too.

Good luck with this Frustrated - it sounds like it is the dental surgery that is dragging its feet. It's how they get around these complaints. They're lost, found, lost again, buried in peat for 3 months and recycled as firelighters. If they don't respond to complaints, they can truthfully say they have never had to deal with any. Happens with tax returns too.

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: GUEST,"Frustrated" A wee word on Statistics, to "A
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 11:00 AM

Hey, Jude! I looked at the SPSO Site you kindly linked, and checked out a couple of things (rather than make a complaint right away, I think I'll try a letter to the person dealing with my case, avoiding overt sarcasm but quoting the part from my letter of a year ago which gives the information they have just relayed back to me). I found the following table interesting:

"Of the complaints that went to full investigation,
outcomes for 2005-06 were:

Fully upheld   13
Partly upheld 41
Not upheld    43"

Wonder when the original complaints "upheld" were submitted.

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: GUEST,Still Frustrated after all these years.
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 10:47 AM

Gee, thanks to everyone (especially, as I bet we'll all agree, "Peace" for his inspired piece of Canuck folklore; I could legitimately add the shorthand "LOL", because I did "Laugh Out Loud"). I stated that I'd try to keep things short in earlier message, only mentioning things directly concerned with the actual delays rather than adding a couple of circumstances that are really distressing me; briefly, because the Big Bad Crown was pressing against one edge of a Front Tooth for a few months, this Front Tooth has "rotated" (very slightly, of course) and thus caused the appearance of a gap between it and the other Front Tooth; actually, it's just a "step" caused by one tooth moving forwards of the other. Worse; this feature now causes a whistle on the pronunciation of sibilants ("s" followed by "o" is worst of all). The difference between recordings made in 2003/2004 and those made last year is unmistakeable. Waaaah! And I always strove for perfect diction in singing.

Okay: I've checked when the MP holds her "Surgeries" in this Library. Exits "frustrated by bureaucratic arse-dragging"; I may be gone for some time)

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 15 Feb 07 - 06:56 PM

"Signed
Mr Technologically Challenged (more like Unaware) "

Unfortunately, you, like me, still have to struggle with the system.

I may may well know the right technical code words, but you probably know, maybe even better than me, the right swear words...


:-)

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: Peace
Date: 15 Feb 07 - 03:19 PM

Yo, Frustrated. I can see you have evey right to be so named. I went through a situation with an office of government--I won't go into details--and finally I got pissed (a Canuck expression meaning 'angry enough to bite the arse out of a skunk and bark at the hole'). I called my elected member of the legislature and he phoned the office that was giving me a problem. Honest, the NEXT morning I received a phone call from the director of the government office and we got stuff straightened out during THAT phone call. You situation may take a bit longer, but call someone who is responsible to YOU and get that person to deal with it. And don't take shit from no one!

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: Alba
Date: 15 Feb 07 - 03:04 PM

...aye it's contact your local MP time I think. Seriously.
Things seem to happen almost miraculously once your MP becomes involved, at least that has been my experience in the past.

Again Good Luck...
Jude

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: GUEST,Frustrated &c
Date: 15 Feb 07 - 02:42 PM

Thanks for responses, advice and sympathy. I didn't intend going into details, since I recognise that the particular matter is really only my concern, but as an example in general of bureaucratic arse-dragging, this is it in outline (just click off and read something more interesting if ye like):

Some fifteen years ago, I broke an upper tooth; not a front one, but one immediately next to that. A simple "ceramic cap-crown" was made, and for twelve years served perfectly, was indeed indistinguishable from my real teeth. Then it fell out. The dentist who fitted it having retired, I went to her successor in the local practice. He said a new one had to be made, to which I was agreeable. When that was fitted, and I looked at it once I got home, it was immediately apparent that it was much, much too big (and was, moreover, of a quite different "profile; my teeth are flat, this was rounded). It actually overlapped the teeth on either side, rather than sitting neatly between them, as the first one had done. I returnied to the Dentist in the first instance, seeking "local resolution". He said he was satisfied with it (nice form of words), and even when I pointed out the size, shape, overlap, still said it seemed fine to him. Nevertheless - after two requests - he referred me to the Conservation Department at the Dental Hospital. I put these concerns in writing, and contacted the Ombudsman's office. This was in October of 2005. At about the same time, the new crown fell out. In December of 2005, I attended the Hospital, and the Consultant there said that it was not the concern of the Conservation Dept. I informed the Ombudsman's Investigator of this, in December 2005, and requested that their Specialist look at Since then, there have been several excuses about sick-leave and workload; to each of these I responded, pointing out (politely) that it would be a comparatively simple matter to look at the two crowns, compare their sizes, and see that the earlier, smaller, one fitted perfectly, while the other (obviously) could not. Well, just the other day I received a letter from the Ombudsman's Investigator stating (wait for it) that because the Dental Hospital Consultant had not commented, they could not proceed further for the moment, and would ask their Specialist to think of a new approach. That is, it took more than a year for me to be told what I had already written...

Hence my desire to find out just how much these people actually do, for their salary of £23,500 per annum.

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: Alba
Date: 14 Feb 07 - 09:26 PM

Just another thought.
If you feel that you are not gaining any satisfaction via the Ombudsman route.... (**their office should be more than happy to tell you the number of compaints they deal with yearly, monthly, weekly by the way. That is what they do after all.**)... then I would suggest the next step is to contact your local MP and have him/her get their staff on the ball. That generally gets a result.
Again good luck.
J

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: Alba
Date: 14 Feb 07 - 08:26 PM

Hi FBBAD,
Here is the info for the Scottish Public Service Ombudsman Offices which are based in Edinburgh.

SPSO
4 Melville Street
Edinburgh EH3 7NS
Tel [phone]
Text 0790 049 4372
Fax [phone]

There is a website which will explain how to file a complaint with the Ombudsman Office.The Website

You must be pretty much at the end of your rope FBBAD if you feel the need to go down this road.
Good Luck and hope all works out well for you.
Jude

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: Peace
Date: 14 Feb 07 - 08:13 PM

Yes, i did mean IP address. You are the second person to bring that to my attention. Thank you.

Signed
Mr Technologically Challenged (more like Unaware)

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 14 Feb 07 - 06:18 PM

"did the deletion based on the URL"

You mean the IP address.

Signed
Mr Technically Pedantic

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: Peace
Date: 14 Feb 07 - 12:19 PM

So I take it that all guest posts in non-music threads will now be deleted as a matter of course. Otherwise, there is a clone targetting certain members, and that can only be done if the clone can read URLs. So is it policy that guest posts will be deleted willy-nilly? Or only CERTAIN guest's post? That is a fair question. Because I don't expect you will name the clone who did the deletion based on the URL. It's one of two. I know that. Have a nice day.

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: bobad
Date: 14 Feb 07 - 11:54 AM

There now, all is well in Mudville again.

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: GUEST,Frustrated, etc
Date: 14 Feb 07 - 11:47 AM

Thanks, Peace. I'll check it out.

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: Peace
Date: 13 Feb 07 - 06:20 PM

Who is the dumb shit that erased the post where I hot linked to the phone numbers for the Public Services Ombudsmans office in Scotland. I was at another machine and had no cookie. IDIOT. Watch what you're doing ya bloody control freak! If you aren't going to allow guest posting, then fuckin' well say so. Otherwise, stop going all apeshit with the goddamned delete buttons.

http://www.spso.org.uk/contact/index.php

---

I restored the post that started all this, and I deleted the flaming. Try to remember to in type a name when you post as guest in a non music thread.

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: GUEST
Date: 13 Feb 07 - 01:57 PM

Call and ask them.
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/About/HaveYourSay/General-Enquiries

Subject: RE: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: Amos
Date: 13 Feb 07 - 01:56 PM

Call their office. I am sure they're on the telephone exchange.


A

Subject: BS: Public Services Ombudsman
From: GUEST,Frustrated by Bureaucratic Arse-Dragging
Date: 13 Feb 07 - 01:39 PM

Can anyone yell me whether it's possible to find out just how many complaints are dealt with by the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman in any given year? (I'll not take up time by explaining exactly why I want to find out if they ever actually do anything at all; enough to say that Shakespeare got it spot-on in writing of "The Law's delay, the Insolence of Office...")