A key feature of the NHS website allows patients to rate and review NHS health and social care services in England.
User feedback helps patients make informed decisions and encourages care providers to assess their services and make changes where necessary.
To find out more, watch the video about ratings and reviews on YouTube.
Patients
How patients can rate and review care providers
Visit find services near you on the NHS website and search for any NHS care provider. After selecting it, you can rate and review it.
You'll be asked when you visited the service and to write a review about your visit. You’ll also be asked to rate your experience. There are some optional questions for certain care providers before you can submit your review.
You can submit an anonymous review, but we will send you a code so that you can prove you've provided a valid email address.
All reviews are checked using a combination of artificial intelligence (AI) and specialist moderators, to make sure that they meet our reviews policy before being published. Reviews that do not comply will not be published. Only reviews about experiences that happened within the last 2 years will be published.
Read more about the NHS website reviews policy and patient feedback terms and conditions.
How long reviews stay on the website
Published reviews stay on the NHS website for 2 years from the time of your experience. After 2 years they're removed and any associated personal information is deleted.
Care providers
Right to reply
Care providers have the right to reply to all patient reviews. This can be done using the NHS Profile Manager.
If you believe a review does not match our reviews policy, select "report as unsuitable". This will remove the review immediately and alert the moderation team.
How care providers can respond to reviews
Patients can leave a review for most types of care provider. To respond to reviews as a care provider, register for the NHS Profile Manager.
How to avoid personal reviews
Patients cannot name or identify individuals through their personal features or descriptions.
How to handle reviews meant for someone else
If you believe a review has been posted on your profile by mistake, select "report as unsuitable" and follow the instructions.
If possible, give details of the location you believe the review was meant for, including the postcode, organisation name and the name of the correct care provider.
Posting reviews on behalf of a patient
A care provider cannot post reviews on behalf of a patient. If a patient is not comfortable with computers, a family member or friend may assist them. Staff working for a care provider should not assist patients in posting reviews.
Several online checks are used to ensure reviews are genuine and posted by patients, not staff. Any reviews found to have been posted by staff are immediately removed from the website.
Social care: third-party review providers
Patients can leave reviews for care homes and homecare services on the NHS website.
Reviews supplied by trusted partners who provide a similar online feedback service are also published on the NHS website.
Reviews can also be exported to any partner who wishes to receive them. These can then be published on other websites, increasing their visibility.
Artificial intelligence (AI)
Every review is checked by an artificial intelligence (AI) tool, to make sure it meets our reviews policy.
Moderators
The role of the NHS website moderators
Our moderators:
- monitor the accuracy of moderation done by the artificial intelligence (AI) tool
- investigate reports of unsuitable reviews and action them appropriately
- move reviews that may have been submitted to an incorrect profile
- respond to any safeguarding concerns (such as suicide or self-harm) and liaise with clinical staff
How to deal with unfair or inaccurate comments
A patient's review reflects their experience. You may disagree with them, but they're entitled to express their opinions as long as they're honest and genuinely held.
If you believe the artificial intelligence (AI) moderation has made an error, you can notify our moderation team by selecting "report as unsuitable". You'll need to give a short explanation outlining why you feel the review does not comply with the reviews policy.
After submitting the report, the review will be removed immediately and a moderator will review it and your report. Please be aware that a review will be republished if it does not breach our guidelines.
Reviews that identify individual staff members or make accusations of clinical negligence will not be published.
How we handle reviews that mention suicide or self-harm
Any reviews on the NHS website that raise safeguarding concerns about a vulnerable patient, such as suicide or self-harm, will be identified by AI and then checked by specialist moderators.
Once we're alerted, we will liaise with clinical staff and respond by email as appropriate.