"Poor response"

I made a complaint to patient relations at Forth valley hospital at the end of June 25. It was immediately escalated to stage 2 with response date of end of July 25. Initially when I received response date and outline of the complaint I immediately emailed to correct statements that were not factual as per my complaint. I received no response to this till 5 days before the response date and while apology was forthcoming I was informed of delay in complaints handling with reasons cited as "service pressure and resourcing issues". 

While I understand the NHS is under pressure it is not a reason in itself for failing to adhere to the timescale for resolution of complaints.

Additionally if a complaint is to go over the 20 working days the individual should be informed and provided a new date as to when the complaint is expected to be resolved. I was not informed it would go over 20 days since communication was 5 days previous to deadline and I was only told "I will investigate and respond as soon as I can". This suggests an investigation has not even commenced after a month!!!

I feel this response and failure to maintain adequate communication regarding my complaint fall well short of what is deemed acceptable.