Rheumatology Department

Summary

A request was made for complaint statistics and UK transfer rates for the Rheumatology Department at Noble's Hospital over five years. Manx Care disclosed the total number of complaints and their proportion relative to other departments but refused to provide transfer data as it is not held in recorded form.

Key Facts

• Between 1 January 2020 and 31 December 2024, there were 50 complaints regarding the Rheumatology Department.
• Rheumatology complaints represent approximately 2.93% of the 1,705 total complaints across all hospital departments in the same period.
• Data on the percentage of patients requesting care transfer to the UK is not held in a structured format.
• The authority cited Section 20(1)(a) of the Freedom of Information Act 2015 to withhold transfer statistics.
• The request was received on 26 March 2025 and the response was issued on 10 April 2025.

Data Disclosed

• 50
• 1,705
• 2.93%
• 1 January 2020
• 31 December 2024
• 26 March 2025
• 10 April 2025
• 4542185

Exemptions Cited

• Section 20(1)(a) of the Freedom of Information Act 2015 – Information not held in recorded form

Original Request

Over the past 5 years how many complaints have been submitted by patients or those waiting to be seen about the service they received from the Rheumatology Department on Island? How does this compare in relation to other Departments at Nobles? Over the past 5 years what percentage of patients under the Rheumatology Department on Island have requested their care be transferred to the UK?

Data Tables (1)

Full Response Text

Manx Care Noble’s Hospital, Strang Braddan, Isle of Man IM4 4R (01624) 650 000

Our ref: 4542185 10 April 2025

Dear

We write further to your request, received 26 March 2025, which states:

1."Over the past 5 years how many complaints have been submitted by patients or those waiting to be seen about the service they received from the Rheumatology Department
on Island?

1. How does this compare in relation to other Departments at Nobles?

2. Over the past 5 years what percentage of patients under the Rheumatology
   Department on Island have requested their care be transferred to the UK?"

Response

Question 1:
Between 1 January 2020 and 31 December 2024, Manx Care (DHSC before April 1st 2021) received a total of 50 complaints relating to the Rheumatology Department at Noble’s Hospital. These include complaints from both patients receiving care and those awaiting appointments.

Question 2:
Over the same five-year period, the total number of complaints recorded across all hospital departments (Clinical/Non Clinical) was 1,705. Therefore, complaints associated with Rheumatology represent approximately 2.93% of all recorded departmental complaints. This figure suggests that Rheumatology accounts for a modest proportion of total complaints when compared to other higher-volume departments.

Question 3:
With regard to the number or percentage of Rheumatology patients who have requested to transfer their care to the UK, Manx Care is unable to provide a specific figure. This information is not held in recorded form that allows direct extraction or quantification. Accordingly, the following exemption applies:

• Section 20(1)(a) of the Freedom of Information Act 2015 – Information not held in recorded form.
  This exemption applies where the public authority does not hold the requested information in a reportable format, and where compliance would require creation of new information, which is outside the scope of the Act.

In this instance, patient transfer requests are not recorded in a centralised or structured field specifically linked to the Rheumatology Department. Identifying this would necessitate manual review of individual clinical notes, referral documents, or free-text entries, which would involve generating new information.

Please quote the reference number 4542185 in any future communications.

Your right to request a review

If you are unhappy with this response to your freedom of information request, you may ask us to carry out an internal review of the response, by completing a complaint form and submitting it electronically or by delivery/post.

An electronic version of our complaint form can be found by going to our website at https://services.gov.im/freedom-of-information/Review . If you would like a paper version of our complaint form to be sent to you by post, please contact me and I will be happy to arrange for this. Your review request should explain why you are dissatisfied with this response, and should be made as soon as practicable. We will respond as soon as the review has been concluded.

If you are not satisfied with the result of the review, you then have the right to appeal to the Information Commissioner for a decision on; 1. Whether we have responded to your request for information in accordance with Part 2 of the Freedom of Information Act 2015; or 2. Whether we are justified in refusing to give you the information requested.
In response to an application for review, the Information Commissioner may, at any time, attempt to resolve a matter by negotiation, conciliation, mediation or another form of alternative dispute resolution and will have regard to any outcome of this in making any subsequent decision. More detailed information on your right to a review can be found on the Information Commissioner’s website at www.inforights.im. Should you have any queries concerning this letter, please do not hesitate to contact me. Further information about freedom of information requests can be found at www.gov.im/foi.

I will now close your request as of this date.

Yours sincerely