Friends and Family Test
Would you recommend us to your friends and family?
The NHS Friends and Family Test (FFT) is an important short survey opportunity for you to provide feedback on the care and treatment you receive within Stockport NHS Foundation Trust to help improve our services. It is free and totally anonymous.
The Friends and Family Test was introduced in 2013. It asks patients whether they would recommend our hospital wards, A&E, maternity and outpatient departments and community services to their friends and family if they needed similar care or treatment. This means every patient in these areas is able to give quick feedback on the quality of the care they receive, giving us a better understanding of the needs of our patients and enabling improvements.
This short film explains what the Friends and Family Test is in a clear and simple way. You can also view the in-vision British Sign Language version of the file
How does it work?
When you are discharged, or within the 48 hours that follow your outpatient or community appointment, you will be asked to answer the following question: "How likely are you to recommend our service to friends and family if they needed similar care or treatment?"
- You will be invited to respond to the question by choosing one of six options, ranging from "extremely likely" to "extremely unlikely".
- You will also have the opportunity to explain why you have given your answer, so please answer any follow-up questions.
- You may be asked to answer the question by a member of our staff before going home, or you may be invited to do so by returning a postcard or, by mobile phone via SMS text message, or on our website.
Do I have to respond to the question?
Your answer is voluntary. But if you do answer, your feedback will provide valuable information for us to celebrate good practice, and identify opportunities to make improvements.
Responses are anonymous and will not be traced back to you, and your details and phone number will not be passed on to anyone. Members of your family, friend or carers are welcome to answer the question if you are unable to.
If you feel that you should have been given the opportunity to respond but did not receive the question, please contact our Patient and Customer Services team by telephoning 0161 419 5678 or email pcs@stockport.nhs.uk
How will the results be used?
We will gather the results and analyse them to see if and where any action is required. The responses to the FFT question will be used to create an overall score, which will be published on the NHS Choices website.
Does this replace the NHS complaints procedure or other forms of feedback?
No, this does not replace the current NHS complaints procedure or other forms of feedback. We will continue to use additional ways of gathering feedback in addition to the NHS friends and family test.
Staff Friends and Family Test
NHS England publishes national results for the Staff Friends and Family Test (Staff FFT). The data can be found on the NHS England website and will also be available on NHS Choices. We also publish Staff FFT results for Stockport NHS Foundation Trust.
Other useful information
The key principles of the Staff Friends and Family Test, the full guidance for implementation, and a list of frequently asked questions are provided below:
Want to know more?
Further information is available on the national NHS website.