How to File a Patient-Safety Complaint About Medical Care (Joint Commission options)
If you’re worried that someone received unsafe or poor-quality medical care, you can file a patient-safety complaint with the Joint Commission. This option is most useful for serious safety or quality concerns - especially if you’ve already tried to raise the issue through the facility or hospital’s own complaint process and you’re not getting a clear response. Keep your focus on what happened, when it happened, and why it put the patient at risk.
The Joint Commission’s preferred way to receive a concern is through its online submission form. They describe this route as more direct and timely, which matters when you’re trying to get a safety issue in front of the right team without delays. If you’re able to use the online form, start there.
Need to report by phone? Call 1.800.994.6610.
You can also mail your report to: Office of Quality and Patient Safety, Joint Commission, One Renaissance Boulevard, Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois 60181.
Don’t send it by fax or email: The Joint Commission does not accept faxed or emailed submissions for patient-safety reports.
Don’t include records or personal documents: The Joint Commission can’t accept copies of medical records, photos, billing invoices, or other related personal information - and they will be shredded upon receipt.
No in-person complaints: The Joint Commission does not accept walk-ins or complaints filed in person.
Practical Tips
- ✓ If you can, try raising the concern through the facility or hospital first (patient advocate, grievance process, medical unit supervisor) so there’s a record of your attempt to resolve it.
- ✓ Write down who you contacted, when you contacted them, and what you were told.
- ✓ Include the patient’s name and basic identifying details the organization will recognize (for example, date of birth or a patient/account number if you have it).
- ✓ List the dates, times, and location(s) involved, plus the names/titles of staff if you know them.
- ✓ Describe the safety concern in plain language: what happened, what should have happened, and what harm (or risk of harm) resulted.
- ✓ Add your contact information and the best way to reach you for follow-up questions.
- ✓ Don’t attach medical records, photos, billing invoices, or other personal documents - those materials can’t be accepted and will be shredded.
- ✓ Don’t try to submit by fax or email; use the online form, phone, or mail instead.
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