Friends and Family Test (FFT)
Your opinion of our services is very important to us. We want every patient's experience to be excellent, and we use the Friends and Family Test to understand what matters most to patients and their carers or family members.
Take our Friends and Family Test survey (Microsoft Forms)
The Friends and Family Test is a national initiative which began in 2013, so called because patients were asked if they would recommend a hospital ward or department to friends and family if they needed similar care or treatment.
The survey name remains the same, but, following a review in 2018/19, the survey now asks the question:
"Overall, how was your experience of our service?"
You can rank your answer from 'very good' to 'very poor'. You'll have the opportunity to explain your score by adding comments, and you may also be asked some follow-up questions. This is important because service providers can only make changes if they know exactly what is or is not working.
Your responses are free and anonymous. You will not be identified from your feedback.
Put us to the test… the NHS Friends and Family Test - video
Friends and Family Test (FFT) - nhs.uk
Other ways to give feedback
There are also other ways to give your feedback.
By telephone
If you have given us a current mobile number and you have visited an outpatient or day case area, or one of the Emergency Departments, you should receive a text message from the number 80870.
Some patients who have stayed overnight may also receive the message.
Text responses to this number are free; please disregard any alerts (sent by some mobile networks) that you may be charged, these are automated generic warnings. Some mobile networks also block responses to this number (and other short code numbers), please contact your provider if you are unable to send your reply.
If you do not have a mobile phone, but you have provided a current landline number, you may be telephoned at home for your feedback.
See below for information about our provider and what to do if you don't wish to be contacted by text or telephone.
In writing
Ask staff for a paper copy of the Friends and Family Test questionnaire.
Survey details
You should be asked to give your feedback during your visit or inpatient stay, or once you have gone home by text message or phone call.
If you are using our maternity services, we will aim to ask for your views on the four stages of your care: antenatal, labour and birth, the postnatal ward, and postnatal community visits.
Possible responses to the question asking you to review the overall service you have received range from 'very good' to 'very poor'. You will also have an option to give a reason for your rating and any other comments. A friend or family member or carer is welcome to answer the question if you're unable to.
Through this feedback, we can hear about your experience in our hospitals. We share the results of the survey with staff. Positive feedback helps staff to know what makes a difference to patient care. When the feedback is less positive, the Trust knows where improvement is needed.
Other formats
If you require the survey in another format, such as a language other than English, British Sign Language or Easy Read, please contact the team on: Patient.Experience@ouh.nhs.uk or 01865 740 892.
Our external provider
Oxford University Hospitals has asked Healthcare Communications (HC) to contact patients on behalf of the Trust with text messages and phone calls for feedback. All contact details are encrypted before they are securely transferred and held in accordance with the Data Protection Act (1998). The details sent are:
- Your full name (your feedback is anonymous so when OUH receives the feedback from HC, we do not know who has given the feedback)
- Your age and gender
- Your telephone number(s)
- Your appointment details – time, date and location (this ensures that you are surveyed at the right time and that your feedback can be linked to the right department)
What to do if you do not wish to take part
If you do not want to be contacted for feedback by text message or phone, please tell us in one of the following ways and we will opt you out of the service.
- Speak to the receptionist at your appointment or the staff on the Day Case Unit.
- Contact the Patient Experience team on Patient.Experience@ouh.nhs.uk or call 01865 740 892
9.00am - 5.00pm Monday to Friday.
- Reply 'STOP' if you receive a text message.
- Explain when you are telephoned that you do not wish to take part.
Last reviewed:24 February 2023