Policies and Procedures

We will register you with a GP, and you do have a right to request to see a GP of your choice.

All patients aged over 75 years will have a named GP.

You can find out who your named GP is by asking at reception; this information is also shown on your repeat prescription form.

If you have a complaint or concern about the service you have received from the doctors or any of the staff working in this GP surgery, please let us know. This includes Primary Care Network staff working as part of our GP surgery. We operate a complaints procedure as part of an NHS system for dealing with complaints. Our complaints system meets national criteria.

How to complain
We hope that most problems can be sorted out easily and quickly when they arise and with the person concerned. For example, by requesting a face-to-face meeting to discuss your concerns.

If your problem cannot be sorted out this way and you wish to make a complaint, we would like you to let us know as soon as possible. By making your complaint quickly, it is easier for us to establish what happened. If it is not possible to do that, please let us have details of your complaint:

Within 6 months of the incident that caused the problem; or

Within 6 months of discovering that you have a problem, provided this is within 12 months of the incident.

Complaints should be addressed to the GP surgery team verbally or in writing. Alternatively, you may ask for an appointment with the GP surgery to discuss your concerns. They will explain the complaints procedure to you and make sure your concerns are dealt with promptly. Please be as specific as possible about your complaint.

What we will do
We will acknowledge your complaint within three working days. We will aim to have investigated your complaint within ten working days of the date you raised it with us. We will then offer you an explanation or a meeting with the people involved, if you would like this. When we investigate your complaint, we will aim to:

– Find out what happened and what went wrong.

– Make it possible for you to discuss what happened with those concerned, if you would like this.

– Make sure you receive an apology, where this is appropriate.

– Identify what we can do to make sure the problem does not happen again.

Complaining on behalf of someone else
We take medical confidentiality seriously. Please note, if you wish to complain on behalf of someone else, the practice adheres strictly with GDPR, therefore, written consent from the patient will be required prior to commencing the complaints process. There are some exclusions from this, if the patient does not have mental capacity.

Complaining to NHS England
You have the right to make a complaint about any aspect of NHS care, treatment or service, this is written into the NHS Constitution on GOV.UK.

There are two ways you can make a complaint:

– You can complain to the healthcare provider: this is the organisation where you received the NHS service, for example a GP surgery or dental surgery.

– You can complain to the commissioner of the service: this is the organisation that paid for the service or care you received.

If you want to make a complaint about primary care services to the commissioner you will now contact the Black Country Integrated Care Board instead of NHS England.

You can do this by:

Telephone: 0300 0120 281

Email: bcicb.time2talk@nhs.net

Writing to us at: Time2Talk, NHS Black Country Integrated Care Board (ICB) Civic Centre, St Peter’s Square, Wolverhampton, WV1 1SH.

If you want to make a complaint directly to the provider of the primary care service, you still can.

If you have an ongoing complaint placed on or after 1 July 2022, you will receive a letter from NHS England informing you that the Black Country ICB is now handling your complaint, this will include confirmation of your case handler.

If you have an ongoing complaint placed before 1 July 2022, you will receive a letter from NHS England informing you that your complaint is being retained by NHS England, this will include confirmation of your case handler.

Unhappy with the outcome of your complaint?
If you are not happy with the way your complaint has been dealt with by the GP surgery and NHS England and would like to take the matter further, you can contact the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO). The PHSO makes final decisions on unresolved complaints about the NHS in England. It is an independent service which is free for everyone to use.

To take your complaint to the Ombudsman, visit the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman website or call 0345 015 4033.

Further information on complaining can be found here.

Access to Patient Information

We respect your right to privacy and keep all your health information confidential and secure. It is important that the NHS keeps accurate and up-to-date records about your health and treatment so that those treating you can provide the best possible care. We have a fully computerised medical record system which means information about your healthcare is held on a secure server, which is held at Wolverhampton City Clinical Commissioning Group (not at the practice).

You have the right to know what information we hold about you. The practice is registered and complies with the Data Protection Act 1998 (this changes to General Data Protection Regulation – GDPR, in May 2018). Any request for access to notes by a patient, patient’s representative or outside body will be dealt with in accordance with the Act. Please contact the Practice Manager for further information.

Subject Access Requests

Please enquire if you wish to see or obtain a copy of your medical records, under the new GDPR you do not have to apply in writing as before, although you will be asked for ID verification prior to accessing information. You can view your medical records online by using ‘Patient Access’ please enquire for further details.

If you are referred to a hospital specialist you are also welcome to request a copy of the referral letter. NHS Connecting for Health is currently developing the National Care Records Service, which will create a Summary Care Record (SCR) for each individual patient, to be held centrally. At this pilot stage the record is limited to current medication, known allergies and adverse reactions. Eventually the aim is to enable healthcare staff jointly involved in your care, such as your GP and your hospital consultant, to easily access and share information through this national record.

You have the right to withdraw your consent to information being shared or uploaded onto the national spine (Summary Care Record). If you wish to discuss this or opt out, or request an ‘opt out form’ please ask to see the practice managers, please ask at reception.

Consent– We will be contacting patients via our texting service to seek consent to contact you when appropriate. Please confirm your contact preferences details with us.

GDPR– The Practice is working towards compliance with new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) from 25.5.2018 and replaces The Data Protection Act 1998. The practice has appointed Dr Mittal as its Data Protection Officer, supported by the practice managers.

GDPR – Privacy Statement (see below)
This information explains what information is captured from the people visiting the website and explains how it is used and protected.

Data Protection Officer – The Practice has appointed PCDC to be its Data Protection Officer, as we are unable to provide this service ourselves, as a small practice. As a GP Practice we are a public authority and carry out certain processing activities. They assist with internal compliance, advise on Data Protection  obligations and  provide advise on Data Protection Impact Assessments. They act as a contact point for data subjects and the ICO – Information Commissioners Office.

PCDC, MBV Enterprise Centre, 6 David Lane, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, NG6 0JU
Tel: 0115 838 6770
www.pcdc.org.uk

If you wish to find out more about Information Governance, please contact the practice on wolccg.probertroadsurgery@nhs.net & mark your email  ‘for the attention of the practice managers’

Unattendance of pre-booked appointments

Known as DNA – did not attend. If a patient fails to attend a pre-booked appointment more than twice in 1 year, they will receive a letter from the practice informing them that if they persist, by continuing to waste appointments with their healthcare professional, which could be allocated to people in need of assistance, their registration with the Practice may be compromised. This is due to on going pressures on the NHS & GP Practices nationwide. We appreciate your assistance in this matter.

The average pay for GPs working in the practice of Probert Road Surgery in the last financial year was £127,500 before tax and National Insurance.

Since 2019 senior NHS doctors have had the opportunity to receive specialist training and spend some of their time working as Medical Examiners at the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust. Alongside other specially trained staff, their job is to give independent advice into causes of deaths – except for deaths which have to be reviewed by a Coroner.

The Medical Examiners ensure that all deaths are reviewed by someone who is independent and who was not involved in the patient’s care. The Medical Examiner will work with the GP to ensure that the information contained on the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (MCCD), is correct and that referrals to the Coroner are made, if necessary, in a timely and appropriate manner to avoid delays.

Medical Examiners and their staff (usually called Medical Examiner Officers) offer families and carers an opportunity to raise questions or concerns about the cause of death of a loved one or about the care they received beforehand. This will usually be done over the phone and if required a meeting can be arranged.

A key role of the Medical Examiner is to make it easier for the bereaved to understand the wording on the Medical Certificate which explains the cause of death. Medical Examiners also look at the relevant medical records and discuss the causes of death with the doctor filling in the MCCD.

Coroners

Some deaths must be notified to the Coroner. When the Coroner starts an investigation, he or she will investigate the death independently – although the Medical Examiner may still provide expert medical advice to the Coroner.

Further information in relation to Coroners can be found on the Ministry of Justice website, as the government are responsible for the guidance. Alternatively, you can e-mail:coroners@justice.gov.uk

What questions will I be asked when the Medical Examiner’s Office contact me?

The Medical Examiner or their staff will explain what is written on the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death and what it means and will ask if you have any questions or concerns.

They will also discuss the Medical Examiner’s review and ask if there are any concerns or questions about the care the person received before their death. This is the best time for you to raise questions and speak about anything that concerns you.

You will have the opportunity to ask further questions, if you wish to do so. In instances, where the Medical Examiner will not be able to answer your questions immediately, the Medical Examiner will assist in seeking answers, as appropriate, and advise you about sources of additional support available.

Why am I being asked if I have any concerns?

A discussion with a Medical Examiner or their staff provides you with an opportunity to have an open and honest conversation and address any worries or concerns with someone who was not involved in providing care to the person who died.

It could be as simple as helping you to understand more about the treatment and cause/s of death or to understand the medical language used. There may be something about the care which you think did not feel right – this is an opportunity to ask questions.

The Medical Examiner will provide an independent view of causes of death and the care provided. Medical Examiners and their staff will discuss your thoughts, questions and concerns and if they find issues with care that need further investigation will refer these on.

As well as answering your questions, this can help us to provide better care for patients, their families and carers by recognising ways in which care can be improved in the future.

Can I nominate someone else to talk, if it’s too difficult for me?

Yes, the Medical Examiner or their staff may contact you to ask who you would like us to talk to instead or you can let the medical team know if you would rather appoint someone else as a first point of contact.

The Medical Examiner or Medical Examiner Officer will usually contact you by phone, however, we can make other arrangements if you let us know.

What if I do not want to speak to the Medical Examiner or their staff or I do not want to tell them about my concerns?

Medical Examiners are independent, so we would like you to speak to them or their staff, if possible. They will help explain things to you and are specially trained to answer your questions.

However, we understand this is a difficult time for many people and so speaking to someone is completely your choice. If you are not sure, you can contact the Medical Examiner or their staff on: Telephone: 01902 445863 / 01902 444072
Email: rwh-tr.medicalexaminerservice@nhs.net

They can give you more information which will help you decide if you want to go ahead – they are specially trained to help people during difficult times and will be very understanding and supportive of your wishes.

If Medical Examiners find any potential issues, they will be able to raise these with people responsible for the care of the person who died or refer the issues on to someone who can investigate further.

Speaking with the Medical Examiner and Medical Examiner Officers can help improve the care provided by the NHS to other patients and carers in future.

What would happen if something was not right?

The Medical Examiner and Medical Examiner Officers are here to listen to your questions and concerns, provide answers if possible and, if necessary, pass them on to someone who can investigate further.

Medical Examiners will not investigate further themselves, as they must complete their work within set time limits for the death certification process.

Will funeral plans or release of the body take longer?

We make every effort to avoid any delays and work with families and carers to meet the legal requirements for registering deaths and therefore it is not anticipated that the funeral plans or release of the body will take longer.

What can I do if I have questions or concerns about the Medical Examiner process?

If you are not satisfied with the Medical Examiner’s advice, we suggest you discuss this with staff from the Medical Examiner’s office in the first instance. If you are still not satisfied, you can contact:

The GP Practice that the death certificate was issued from – Probert Road Surgery

Please address all concerns and complaints to;
The Practice Managers
Probert Road Surgery,
Probert Road,
Wolverhampton,
WV10 6UF.

Telephone 01902 444035
Email: bcicb.probertroadsurgery@nhs.net

How can I contact the Medical Examiner office?

You can contact the Medical Examiner office either by phone or email:

Telephone: 01902 445863 / 01902 444072
Email: rwh-tr.medicalexaminerservice@nhs.net

The opening hours are Monday – Friday, 9:00am–5:00pm

As a patient you have the right to:

• Be registered with a named doctor
• Change doctor if desired (but please remember that you may have to see any of the doctors if your need is urgent)
• Receive emergency care
• Receive appropriate drugs and medicines
• Be referred for specialist or second opinion if they and GP agrees
• See your medical records or a copy, subject to certain laws
• Know that by law, everyone working for the NHS must keep the contents of your medical records private.

With these rights come responsibilities for the public. That means being:

• Courteous to staff at all times
• As prompt as possible for all appointments
• Responsible for cancelling appointments in adequate time.

Probert Road Surgery (the Practice)

Data Protection Privacy Notice for Patients

Introduction:

This privacy notice lets you know what happens to any personal data that you give to us, or any information that we may collect from you or about you from other organisations.

This privacy notice applies to personal information processed by or on behalf of the practice.

This Notice explains

· Who we are and how we use your information

· Information about our Data Protection Officer

· What kinds of personal information about you we hold and use (process)

· The legal grounds for our processing of your personal information (including when we share it with others)

· What should you do if your personal information changes?

· For how long your personal information is retained / stored by us?

· What are your rights under Data Protection laws

The UK General Data Protection Regulation (UKGDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018) became law on 25th May 2018, and 1st January 2021 when the UK exited the EU.

For the purpose of applicable data protection legislation (including but not limited to the General Data Protection Regulation (Regulation (UK) 2016/679) (the “UKGDPR”), and the Data Protection Act 2018 the practice responsible for your personal data is Probert Road Surgery

This Notice describes how we collect, use and process your personal data, and how in doing so, we comply with our legal obligations to you. Your privacy is important to us, and we are committed to protecting and safeguarding your data privacy rights.

How we use your information and the law.

Probert Road Surgery will be what’s known as the ‘Controller’ of your personal data.

We collect basic personal data about you and location-based information. This does include name, address and contact details such as email and mobile number etc.

We will also collect sensitive confidential data known as “special category personal data”, in the form of health information, religious belief (if required in a healthcare setting) ethnicity and sex life information that are linked to your healthcare, we may also receive this information about you from other health providers or third parties.

Why do we need your information?

The health care professionals who provide you with care maintain records about your health and any treatment or care you have received previously. These records help to provide you with the best possible healthcare and treatment.

NHS health records may be electronic, paper-based or a mixture of both. We use a combination of working practices and technology to ensure that your information is kept confidential and secure.

Records about you may include the following information;

· Details about you, such as your address, your carer or legal representative and emergency contact details.

· Any contact the surgery has had with you, such as appointments, clinic visits, emergency appointments.

· Notes and reports about your health.

· Details about your treatment and care.

· Results of investigations such as laboratory tests, x-rays etc.

· Relevant information from other health professionals, relatives or those who care for you.

· Contact details (including email address, mobile telephone number and home telephone number)

To ensure you receive the best possible care, your records are used to facilitate the care you receive, including contacting you. Information held about you may be used to help protect the health of the public and to help us manage the NHS and the services we provide. Limited information may be used within the GP practice for clinical audit to monitor the quality of the service we provided.

How do we lawfully use your data?

We need your personal, sensitive and confidential data in order to provide you with healthcare services as a General Practice, under the General Data Protection Regulation we will be lawfully using your information in accordance with: –

Article 6, e) processing is necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority vested in the controller;”

Article 9, (h) processing is necessary for the purposes of preventive or occupational medicine, for the assessment of the working capacity of the employee, medical diagnosis, the provision of health or social care or treatment or the management of health or social care systems

This Privacy Notice applies to the personal data of our patients and the data you have given us about your carers/family members.

We use your personal and healthcare information in the following ways:

· when we need to speak to, or contact other doctors, consultants, nurses or any other medical/healthcare professional or organisation during the course of your diagnosis or treatment or on going healthcare;

· when we are required by law to hand over your information to any other organisation, such as the police, by court order, solicitors, or immigration enforcement.

· In a de-identified form to support planning of health services and to improve health outcomes for our population

We will never pass on your personal information to anyone else who does not need it, or has no right to it, unless you give us consent to do so.

Legal justification for collecting and using your information

The law says we need a legal basis to handle your personal and healthcare information.

Contract: We have a contract with NHS England to deliver healthcare services to you. This contract provides that we are under a legal obligation to ensure that we deliver medical and healthcare services to the public.

Consent: Sometimes we also rely on the fact that you give us consent to use your personal and healthcare information so that we can take care of your healthcare needs.

Please note that you have the right to withdraw consent at any time if you no longer wish to receive services from us.

Necessary care: Providing you with the appropriate healthcare, where necessary. The Law refers to this as ‘protecting your vital interests’ where you may be in a position not to be able to consent.

Law: Sometimes the law obliges us to provide your information to an organisation (see above).

Special categories

The law states that personal information about your health falls into a special category of information because it is very sensitive. Reasons that may entitle us to use and process your information may be as follows:

Public Interest: Where we may need to handle your personal information when it is considered to be in the public interest. For example, when there is an outbreak of a specific disease and we need to contact you for treatment, or we need to pass your information to relevant organisations to ensure you receive advice and/or treatment

Consent: When you have given us consent

Vital Interest: If you are incapable of giving consent, and we have to use your information to protect your vital interests (eg if you have had an accident and you need emergency treatment)

Defending a claim: If we need your information to defend a legal claim against us by you, or by another party

Providing you with medical care: Where we need your information to provide you with medical and healthcare services

Risk Stratification

Risk stratification data tools are increasingly being used in the NHS to help determine a person’s risk of suffering a condition, preventing an unplanned or (re)admission and identifying a need for preventive intervention. Information about you is collected from several sources including NHS Trusts and from this GP Practice. The identifying parts of your data are removed, analysis of your data is undertaken, and a risk score is then determined. This is then provided back to your GP as data controller in an identifiable form. Risk stratification enables your GP to focus on preventing ill health and not just the treatment of sickness. If necessary, your GP may be able to offer you additional services. Please note that you have the right to opt out of your data being used in this way in most circumstances, please contact the practice for further information about opt out.

Individual Risk Management at a GP practice level however is deemed to be part of your individual healthcare and is covered by our legal powers above.

Medicines Management

The Practice may conduct Medicines Management Reviews of medications prescribed to its patients. This service performs a review of prescribed medications to ensure patients receive the most appropriate, up to date and cost-effective treatments. The reviews are carried out by the CCGs Medicines Management Team under a Data Processing contract with the Practice.

Anonymised information

Sometimes we may provide information about you in an anonymised form. Such information is used analyse population- level heath issues and helps the NHS to plan better services. If we share information for these purposes, then none of the information will identify you as an individual and cannot be traced back to you.

GP Connect Service

The GP Connect service allows authorised clinical staff at NHS 111 to seamlessly access our practice’s clinical system and book directly on behalf of a patient. This means that should you call NHS 111 and the clinician believes you need an appointment with your GP Practice, the clinician will access available appointment slots only (through GP Connect) and book you in. This will save you time as you will not need to contact the practice direct for an appointment.

The practice will not be sharing any of your data and the practice will only allow NHS 111 to see available appointment slots. They will not even have access to your record. However, NHS 111 will share any relevant data with us, but you will be made aware of this. This will help your GP in knowing what treatment / service / help you may require.

Please note if you no longer require the appointment or need to change the date and time for any reason you will need to speak to one of our reception staff and not NHS 111.

Summary Care Records

All patients registered with a GP have a Summary Care Record, unless they have chosen not to have one. The information held in your Summary Care Record gives registered and regulated healthcare professionals, away from your usual GP practice, access to information to provide you with safer care, reduce the risk of prescribing errors and improve your patient experience. Your Summary Care Record contains basic (Core) information about allergies and medications and any reactions that you have had to medication in the past.

Some patients, including many with long term health conditions, previously have agreed to have Additional Information shared as part of their Summary Care Record. This Additional Information includes information about significant medical history (past and present), reasons for medications, care plan information and immunisations.

Change to information held in your Summary Care Record

In light of the current emergency, the Department of Health and Social Care has removed the requirement for a patient’s prior explicit consent to share Additional Information as part of the Summary Care Record. This is because the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has issued a legal notice to healthcare bodies requiring them to share confidential patient information with other healthcare bodies where this is required to diagnose, control and prevent the spread of the virus and manage the pandemic. This includes sharing Additional Information through Summary Care Records, unless a patient objects to this.

If you have already expressed a preference to only have Core information shared in your Summary Care Record, or to opt-out completely of having a Summary Care Record, these preferences will continue to be respected and this change will not apply to you. For everyone else, the Summary Care Record will be updated to include the Additional Information. This change of requirement will be reviewed after the current coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Why we have made this change

In order to look after your health and care needs, health and social care bodies may share your confidential patient information contained in your Summary Care Record with clinical and non-clinical staff in other health and care organisations, for example hospitals, NHS 111 and out of hours organisations. These changes will improve the healthcare that you receive away from your usual GP practice.

Your rights in relation to your Summary Care Record

Regardless of your past decisions about your Summary Care Record preferences, you will still have the same options that you currently have in place to opt out of having a Summary Care Record, including the opportunity to opt-back in to having a Summary Care Record or opt back in to allow sharing of Additional Information.

You can exercise these rights by doing the following:

1. Choose to have a Summary Care Record with all information shared. This means that any authorised, registered and regulated health and care professionals will be able to see a detailed Summary Care Record, including Core and Additional Information, if they need to provide you with direct care.

2. Choose to have a Summary Care Record with Core information only. This means that any authorised, registered and regulated health and care professionals will be able to see limited information about allergies and medications in your Summary Care Record if they need to provide you with direct care.

3. Choose to opt-out of having a Summary Care Record altogether. This means that you do not want any information shared with other authorised, registered and regulated health and care professionals involved in your direct care. You will not be able to change this preference at the time if you require direct care away from your GP practice. This means that no authorised, registered and regulated health and care professionals will be able to see information held in your GP records if they need to provide you with direct care, including in an emergency. To make these changes, you should inform your GP practice or complete this form and return it to your GP practice.

Patient Communication

Because we are obliged to protect any confidential information, we hold about you and we take this very seriously, it is imperative that you let us know immediately if you change any of your contact details.

We may contact you using SMS texting to your mobile phone in the event that we need to notify you about appointments and other services that we provide to you involving your direct care, therefore you must ensure that we have your up to date details. This is to ensure we are sure we are actually contacting you and not another person. As this is operated on an ‘opt out’ basis we will assume that you give us permission to contact you via SMS if you have provided us with your mobile telephone number. Please let us know if you wish to opt out of this SMS service. We may also contact you using the email address you have provided to us. Please ensure that we have your up to date details.

There may be occasions where authorised research facilities would like you to take part in research. Your contact details may be used to invite you to receive further information about such research opportunities.

Safeguarding

The Practice is dedicated to ensuring that the principles and duties of safeguarding adults and children are holistically, consistently and conscientiously applied with the wellbeing of all, at the heart of what we do.

Our legal basis for processing For the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) purposes is: –

Article 6(1)(e) ‘…exercise of official authority…’.

For the processing of special categories data, the basis is: –

Article 9(2)(b) – ‘processing is necessary for the purposes of carrying out the obligations and exercising specific rights of the controller or of the data subject in the field of employment and social security and social protection law…’

Research

Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD) collects de-identified patient data from a network of GP practices across the UK. Primary care data are linked to a range of other health related data to provide a longitudinal, representative UK population health dataset. You can opt out of your information being used for research purposes at any time (see below), full details can be found here: – https://cprd.com/transparency-information

The legal bases for processing this information

CPRD do not hold or process personal data on patients; however, NHS Digital (formally the Health and Social Care Centre) may process ‘personal data’ for us as an accredited ‘safe haven’ or ‘trusted third-party’ within the NHS when linking GP data with data from other sources. The legal bases for processing this data are:

· Medicines and medical device monitoring: Article 6(e) and Article 9(2)(i) – public interest in the area of public health

· Medical research and statistics: Article 6(e) and Article 9(2)(j) – public interest and scientific research purposes

Any data CPRD hold or pass on to bona fide researchers, except for clinical research studies, will have been anonymised in accordance with the Information Commissioner’s Office Anonymisation Code of Practice. We will hold data indefinitely for the benefit of future research, but studies will normally only hold the data we release to them for twelve months.

Categories of personal data

The data collected by Practice staff in the event of a safeguarding situation will be as much personal information as is possible that is necessary to obtain in order to handle the situation. In addition to some basic demographic and contact details, we will also process details of what the safeguarding concern is. This is likely to be special category information (such as health information).

Sources of the data

The Practice will either receive or collect information when someone contacts the organisation with safeguarding concerns, or we believe there may be safeguarding concerns and make enquiries to relevant providers.

Recipients of personal data

The information is used by the Practice when handling a safeguarding incident or concern. We may share information accordingly to ensure duty of care and investigation as required with other partners such as local authorities, the police or healthcare professionals (i.e. their GP or mental health team).

Third party processors

In order to deliver the best possible service, the practice will share data (where required) with other NHS bodies such as other GP practices and hospitals. In addition, the practice will use carefully selected third party service providers. When we use a third party service provider to process data on our behalf then we will always have an appropriate agreement in place to ensure that they keep the data secure, that they do not use or share information other than in accordance with our instructions and that they are operating appropriately. Examples of functions that may be carried out by third parties include:

· Companies that provide IT services & support, including our core clinical systems; systems which manage patient facing services (such as our website and service accessible through the same); data hosting service providers; systems which facilitate appointment bookings or electronic prescription services; document management services etc.

· Delivery services (for example if we were to arrange for delivery of any medicines to you).

· Payment providers (if for example you were paying for a prescription or a service such as travel vaccinations).

Further details regarding specific third-party processors can be supplied on request to the Data Protection Officer as below.

How do we maintain the confidentiality of your records?

We are committed to protecting your privacy and will only use information collected lawfully in accordance with:

· Data Protection Act 2018

· The General Data Protection Regulations 2016

· Human Rights Act 1998

· Common Law Duty of Confidentiality

· Health and Social Care Act 2012

· NHS Codes of Confidentiality, Information Security and Records Management

· Information: To Share or Not to Share Review

Every member of staff who works for an NHS organisation has a legal obligation to keep information about you confidential.

We will only ever use or pass on information about you if others involved in your care have a genuine need for it. We will not disclose your information to any third party without your permission unless there are exceptional circumstances (i.e. life or death situations), where the law requires information to be passed on and / or in accordance with the information sharing principle following Dame Fiona Caldicott’s information sharing review (Information to share or not to share) where “The duty to share information can be as important as the duty to protect patient confidentiality.” This means that health and social care professionals should have the confidence to share information in the best interests of their patients within the framework set out by the Caldicott principles.

Our practice policy is to respect the privacy of our patients, their families and our staff and to maintain compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and all UK specific Data Protection Requirements. Our policy is to ensure all personal data related to our patients will be protected.

All employees and sub-contractors engaged by our practice are asked to sign a confidentiality agreement. The practice will, if required, sign a separate confidentiality agreement if the client deems it necessary. If a sub-contractor acts as a data processor for [Practice Name] an appropriate contract (art 24-28) will be established for the processing of your information.

In certain circumstances you may have the right to withdraw your consent to the processing of data. Please contact the Data Protection Officer in writing if you wish to withdraw your consent. If some circumstances we may need to store your data after your consent has been withdrawn to comply with a legislative requirement.

Some of this information will be held centrally and used for statistical purposes. Where we do this, we take strict measures to ensure that individual patients cannot be identified. Sometimes your information may be requested to be used for research purposes – the surgery will always gain your consent before releasing the information for this purpose in an identifiable format. In some circumstances you can Opt-out of the surgery sharing any of your information for research purposes.

With your consent we would also like to use your information

There are times that we may want to use your information to contact you or offer you services, not directly about your healthcare, in these instances we will always gain your consent to contact you. We would however like to use your name, contact details and email address to inform you of other services that may benefit you. We will only do this with your consent. There may be occasions where authorised research facilities would like you to take part on innovations, research, improving services or identifying trends, you will be asked to opt into such programmes if you are happy to do so.

At any stage where we would like to use your data for anything other than the specified purposes and where there is no lawful requirement for us to share or process your data, we will ensure that you have the ability to consent and opt out prior to any data processing taking place. This information is not shared with third parties or used for any marketing and you can unsubscribe at any time via phone, email or by informing the practice DPO as below.

National Opt-Out Facility

You can choose whether your confidential patient information is used for research and planning.

Who can use your confidential patient information for research and planning?

It is used by the NHS, local authorities, university and hospital researchers, medical colleges and pharmaceutical companies researching new treatments.

Making your data opt-out choice

You can choose to opt out of sharing your confidential patient information for research and planning. There may still be times when your confidential patient information is used: for example, during an epidemic where there might be a risk to you or to other people’s health. You can also still consent to take part in a specific research project.

Will choosing this opt-out affect your care and treatment?

No, your confidential patient information will still be used for your individual care. Choosing to opt out will not affect your care and treatment. You will still be invited for screening services, such as screenings for bowel cancer.

What should you do next?

You do not need to do anything if you are happy about how your confidential patient information is used.

If you do not want your confidential patient information to be used for research and planning, you can choose to opt out securely online or through a telephone service.

You can change your choice at any time. To find out more or to make your choice visit nhs.uk/your-nhs-data-matters or call 0300 303 5678

NHS Digital Data Collection from the Practice

The NHS needs data about the patients it treats to plan and deliver its services and to ensure that care and treatment provided is safe and effective. The General Practice Data for Planning and Research data collection will help the NHS to improve health and care services for everyone by collecting patient data that can be used to do this. For example patient data can help the NHS to:

· monitor the long-term safety and effectiveness of care

· plan how to deliver better health and care services

· prevent the spread of infectious diseases

· identify new treatments and medicines through health research

GP practices already share patient data for these purposes, but this new data collection will be more efficient and effective.

This means that GPs can get on with looking after their patients, and NHS Digital can provide controlled access to patient data to the NHS and other organisations who need to use it, to improve health and care for everyone.

Contributing to research projects will benefit us all as better and safer treatments are introduced more quickly and effectively without compromising your privacy and confidentiality. NHS Digital has engaged with the British Medical Association (BMA), Royal College of GPs (RCGP) and the National Data Guardian (NDG) to ensure relevant safeguards are in place for patients and GP practices.

NHS Digital purposes for processing patient data

Patient data from GP medical records kept by GP practices in England is used every day to improve health, care and services through planning and research, helping to find better treatments and improve patient care. The NHS is introducing an improved way to share this information – called the General Practice Data for Planning and Research data collection.

NHS Digital will collect, analyse, publish and share this patient data to improve health and care services for everyone. This includes:

· informing and developing health and social care policy

· planning and commissioning health and care services

· taking steps to protect public health (including managing and monitoring the coronavirus pandemic)

· in exceptional circumstances, providing you with individual care

· enabling healthcare and scientific research

Any data that NHS Digital collects will only be used for health and care purposes. It is never shared with marketing or insurance companies.

What patient data NHS Digital collect

Patient data will be collected from GP medical records about:

· any living patient registered at a GP practice in England when the collection started – this includes children and adults

· any patient who died after the data collection started, and was previously registered at a GP practice in England when the data collection started

While 1 September has been seen by some as a cut-off date for opt-out, after which data extraction would begin, Government has stated this will not be the case and data extraction will not commence until NHS Digital have met the tests.

The NHS is introducing three changes to the opt-out system which mean that patients will be able to change their opt-out status at any time:

· Patients do not need to register a Type 1 opt-out by 1 September to ensure their GP data will not be uploaded

· NHS Digital will create the technical means to allow GP data that has previously been uploaded to the system via the GPDPR collection to be deleted when someone registers a Type 1 opt-out

· The plan to retire Type 1 opt-outs will be deferred for at least 12 months while we get the new arrangements up and running, and will not be implemented without consultation with the RCGP, the BMA and the National Data Guardian

We will not collect your name or where you live. Any other data that could directly identify you, for example NHS number, General Practice Local Patient Number, full postcode and date of birth, is replaced with unique codes which are produced by de-identification software before the data is shared with NHS Digital.

This process is called pseudonymisation and means that no one will be able to directly identify you in the data. The diagram below helps to explain what this means. Using the terms in the diagram, the data we collect would be described as de-personalised.

NHS Digital will be able to use the same software to convert the unique codes back to data that could directly identify you in certain circumstances, and where there is a valid legal reason. Only NHS Digital has the ability to do this. This would mean that the data became personally identifiable data in the diagram above. An example would be where you consent to your identifiable data being shared with a research project or clinical trial in which you are participating, as they need to know the data is about you. More information about when we may be able to re-identify the data is in the who we share your patient data with section below.

The NHS Digital programme will be providing further information as the programme progresses. In the meantime, if you have any questions, you can contact the programme at enquiries@nhsdigital.nhs.uk. The NHS Digital web pages also provide further information at https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/data-collections-and-data-sets/data-collections/general-practice-data-for-planning-and-research#additional-information-for-gp-practices.

The Data NHD Digital collect

We will only collect structured and coded data from patient medical records that is needed for specific health and social care purposes explained above.

Data that directly identifies you as an individual patient, including your NHS number, General Practice Local Patient Number, full postcode, date of birth and if relevant date of death, is replaced with unique codes produced by de-identification software before it is sent to NHS Digital. This means that no one will be able to directly identify you in the data.

NHS Digital will be able to use the software to convert the unique codes back to data that could directly identify you in certain circumstances, and where there is a valid legal reason. This would mean that the data became personally identifiable in the diagram above. It will still be held securely and protected, including when it is shared by NHS Digital.

NHS Digital will collect

· data on your sex, ethnicity and sexual orientation

· clinical codes and data about diagnoses, symptoms, observations, test results, medications, allergies, immunisations, referrals and recalls, and appointments, including information about your physical, mental and sexual health

· data about staff who have treated you More detailed information about the patient data we collect is contained in the Data Provision Notice issued to GP practices.

NHS Digital Does not collect.

· your name and address (except for your postcode in unique coded form)

· written notes (free text), such as the details of conversations with doctors and nurses

· images, letters and documents

· coded data that is not needed due to its age – for example medication, referral and appointment data that is over 10 years old

· coded data that GPs are not permitted to share by law – for example certain codes about IVF treatment, and certain information about gender re-assignment

Opting out of NHS Digital collecting your data (Type 1 Opt-out)

If you do not want your identifiable patient data (personally identifiable data in the diagram above) to be shared outside of your GP practice for purposes except for your own care, you can register an opt-out with your GP practice. This is known as a Type 1 Opt-out.

Type 1 Opt-outs were introduced in 2013 for data sharing from GP practices, but may be discontinued in the future as a new opt-out has since been introduced to cover the broader health and care system, called the National Data Opt-out. If this happens people who have registered a Type 1 Opt-out will be informed. More about National Data Opt-outs is in the section Who we share patient data with.

NHS Digital will not collect any patient data for patients who have already registered a Type 1 Opt-out in line with current policy. If this changes patients who have registered a Type 1 Opt-out will be informed.

If you do not want your patient data shared with NHS Digital, you can register a Type 1 Opt-out with your GP practice. You can register a Type 1 Opt-out at any time. You can also change your mind at any time and withdraw a Type 1 Opt-out.

Data sharing with NHS Digital will start on 1 September 2021.

If you have already registered a Type 1 Opt-out with your GP practice your data will not be shared with NHS Digital.

If you wish to register a Type 1 Opt-out with your GP practice before data sharing starts with NHS Digital, this should be done by returning this form to your GP practice. If you have previously registered a Type 1 Opt-out and you would like to withdraw this, you can also use the form to do this. You can send the form by post or email to your GP practice or call 0300 3035678 for a form to be sent out to you.

If you register a Type 1 Opt-out after your patient data has already been shared with NHS Digital, no more of your data will be shared with NHS Digital. NHS Digital will however still hold the patient data which was shared with us before you registered the Type 1 Opt-out.

If you do not want NHS Digital to share your identifiable patient data (personally identifiable data in the diagram above) with anyone else for purposes beyond your own care, then you can also register a National Data Opt-out. There is more about National Data Opt-outs and when they apply in the National Data Opt-out section below.

NHS Digital legal basis for collecting, analysing and sharing patient data.

When we collect, analyse, publish and share patient data, there are strict laws in place that we must follow. Under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), this includes explaining to you what legal provisions apply under GDPR that allows us to process patient data. The GDPR protects everyone’s data. NHS Digital has been directed by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care under the General Practice Data for Planning and Research Directions 2021 to collect and analyse data from GP practices for health and social care purposes including policy, planning, commissioning, public health and research purposes.

NHS Digital is the controller of the patient data collected and analysed under the GDPR jointly with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care.

All GP practices in England are legally required to share data with NHS Digital for this purpose under the Health and Social Care Act 2012 (2012 Act). More information about this requirement is contained in the Data Provision Notice issued by NHS Digital to GP practices.

NHS Digital has various powers to publish anonymous statistical data and to share patient data under sections 260 and 261 of the 2012 Act. It also has powers to share data under other Acts, for example the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007.

Regulation 3 of the Health Service (Control of Patient Information) Regulations 2002 (COPI) also allow confidential patient information to be used and shared appropriately and lawfully in a public health emergency. The Secretary of State has issued legal notices under COPI (COPI Notices) requiring NHS Digital, NHS England and Improvement, arm’s-length bodies (such as Public Health England), local authorities, NHS trusts, clinical commissioning groups and GP practices to share confidential patient information to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak. Any information used or shared during the COVID-19 outbreak will be limited to the period of the outbreak unless there is another legal basis to use confidential patient information.

The legal basis under UKGDPR for General Practice Data for Planning and Research

How NHS Digital use patient data

NHS Digital will analyse and link the patient data we collect with other patient data we hold to create national data sets and for data quality purposes.

NHS Digital will be able to use the de-identification software to convert the unique codes back to data that could directly identify you in certain circumstances for these purposes, where this is necessary and where there is a valid legal reason. There are strict internal approvals which need to be in place before we can do this and this will be subject to independent scrutiny and oversight by the Independent Group Advising on the Release of Data (IGARD).

These national data sets are analysed and used by NHS Digital to produce national statistics and management information, including public dashboards about health and social care which are published. We never publish any patient data that could identify you. All data we publish is anonymous statistical data. For more information about data we publish see Data and Information and Data Dashboards.

We may also carry out analysis on national data sets for data quality purposes and to support the work of others for the purposes set out in Our purposes for processing patient data section above.

Who NHS Digital share patient data with

All data which is shared by NHS Digital is subject to robust rules relating to privacy, security and confidentiality and only the minimum amount of data necessary to achieve the relevant health and social care purpose will be shared.

All requests to access patient data from this collection, other than anonymous aggregate statistical data, will be assessed by NHS Digital’s Data Access Request Service, to make sure that organisations have a legal basis to use the data and that it will be used safely, securely and appropriately.

These requests for access to patient data will also be subject to independent scrutiny and oversight by the Independent Group Advising on the Release of Data (IGARD). Organisations approved to use this data will be required to enter into a data sharing agreement with NHS Digital regulating the use of the data.

There are a number of organisations who are likely to need access to different elements of patient data from the General Practice Data for Planning and Research collection. These include but may not be limited to:

· the Department of Health and Social Care and its executive agencies, including Public Health England and other government departments

· NHS England and NHS Improvement

· primary care networks (PCNs), clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and integrated care organisations (ICOs)

· local authorities

· research organisations, including universities, charities, clinical research organisations that run clinical trials and pharmaceutical companies

If the request is approved, the data will either be made available within a secure data access environment within NHS Digital infrastructure, or where the needs of the recipient cannot be met this way, as a direct dissemination of data. We plan to reduce the amount of data being processed outside central, secure data environments and increase the data we make available to be accessed via our secure data access environment. For more information read about improved data access in improving our data processing services.

Data will always be shared in the uniquely coded form (de-personalised data in the diagram above) unless in the circumstances of any specific request it is necessary for it to be provided in an identifiable form (personally identifiable data in the diagram above). For example, when express patient consent has been given to a researcher to link patient data from the General Practice for Planning and Research collection to data the researcher has already obtained from the patient.

It is therefore possible for NHS Digital to convert the unique codes back to data that could directly identify you in certain circumstances, and where there is a valid legal reason which permits this without breaching the common law duty of confidentiality. This would include:

· where the data was needed by a health professional for your own care and treatment

· where you have expressly consented to this, for example to participate in a clinical trial · where there is a legal obligation, for example where the COPI Notices apply – see Our legal basis for collecting, analysing and sharing patient data above for more information on this · where approval has been provided by the Health Research Authority or the Secretary of State with support from the Confidentiality Advisory Group (CAG) under Regulation 5 of the Health Service (Control of Patient Information) Regulations 2002 (COPI) – this is sometimes known as a ‘section 251 approval’

This would mean that the data was personally identifiable in the diagram above. Re-identification of the data would only take place following approval of the specific request through the Data Access Request Service, and subject to independent assurance by IGARD and consultation with the Professional Advisory Group, which is made up of representatives from the BMA and the RCGP. If you have registered a National Data Opt-out, this would be applied in accordance with the National Data Opt-out policy before any identifiable patient data (personally identifiable data in the diagram above) about you was shared. More about the National Data Opt-out is in the section below. Details of who we have shared data with, in what form and for what purposes are published on our data release register.

The practice one of many organisations working in the health and care system to improve care for patients and the public)1.

Whenever you use a health or care service, such as attending Accident & Emergency or using Community Care services, important information about you is collected in a patient record for that service. Collecting this information helps to ensure you get the best possible care and treatment.

The information collected about you when you use these services can also be used and provided to other organisations for purposes beyond your individual care, for instance to help with:

• improving the quality and standards of care provided

• research into the development of new treatments

• preventing illness and diseases

· monitoring safety

• planning services

This may only take place when there is a clear legal basis to use this information. All these uses help to provide better health and care for you, your family and future generations. Confidential patient information about your health and care is only used like this where allowed by law.

Most of the time, anonymised data is used for research and planning so that you cannot be identified in which case your confidential patient information isn’t needed.

You have a choice about whether you want your confidential patient information to be used in this way. If you are happy with this use of information you do not need to do anything. If you do choose to opt out your confidential patient information will still be used to support your individual care. To find out more or to register your choice to opt out, please visit www.nhs.uk/your-nhs-data-matters. On this web page you will:

· See what is meant by confidential patient information

· Find examples of when confidential patient information is used for individual care and examples of when it is used for purposes beyond individual care

· Find out more about the benefits of sharing data

· Understand more about who uses the data

· Find out how your data is protected

· Be able to access the system to view, set or change your opt-out setting

· Find the contact telephone number if you want to know any more or to set/change your opt-out by phone

· See the situations where the opt-out will not apply

You can also find out more about how patient information is used at: https://www.hra.nhs.uk/information-about-patients/ (which covers health and care research); and https://understandingpatientdata.org.uk/what-you-need-know (which covers how and why patient information is used, the safeguards and how decisions are made)

You can change your mind about your choice at any time.

Data being used or shared for purposes beyond individual care does not include your data being shared with insurance companies or used for marketing purposes and data would only be used in this way with your specific agreement.

Health and care organisations have until 2020 to put systems and processes in place so they can be compliant with the national data opt-out and apply your choice to any confidential patient information they use or share for purposes beyond your individual care. Our organisation ‘is / is not currently’ compliant with the national data opt-out policy2

Where do we store your information electronically?

All the personal data we process is processed by our staff in the UK however for the purposes of IT hosting and maintenance this information may be located on servers within the European Union.

No 3rd parties have access to your personal data unless the law allows them to do so and appropriate safeguards have been put in place such as a Data Processor as above). We have a Data Protection regime in place to oversee the effective and secure processing of your personal and or special category (sensitive, confidential) data.

EMIS Web

The Practice uses a clinical system provided by a Data Processor called EMIS, from 10th June 2019, EMIS started storing your practice’s EMIS Web data in a highly secure, third party cloud hosted environment, namely Amazon Web Services (“AWS”).

The data will remain in the UK at all times and will be fully encrypted both in transit and at rest. In doing this, there will be no change to the control of access to your data and the hosted service provider will not have any access to the decryption keys. AWS is one of the world’s largest cloud companies, already supporting numerous public sector clients (including the NHS), and it offers the very highest levels of security and support.

Who are our partner organisations?

We may also have to share your information, subject to strict agreements on how it will be used, with the following organisations;

• NHS Trusts / Foundation Trusts

• GP’s

• Primary Care Network

• NHS Commissioning Support Units

• Independent Contractors such as dentists, opticians, pharmacists

• Private Sector Providers

• Voluntary Sector Providers

• Ambulance Trusts

• Clinical Commissioning Groups

• Social Care Services

• NHS England (NHSE) and NHS Digital (NHSD)

• Multi Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH)

• Local Authorities

• Education Services

• Fire and Rescue Services

• Police & Judicial Services

• Voluntary Sector Providers

• Private Sector Providers

• Other ‘data processors’ which you will be informed of

You will be informed who your data will be shared with and in some cases asked for consent for this to happen when this is required.

Computer System

This practice operates a Clinical Computer System on which NHS Staff record information securely. This information can then be shared with other clinicians so that everyone caring for you is fully informed about your medical history, including allergies and medication.

To provide around the clock safe care, unless you have asked us not to, we will make information available to our Partner Organisation (above). Wherever possible, their staff will ask your consent before your information is viewed.

Shared Care Records

To support your care and improve the sharing of relevant information to our partner organisations (as above) when they are involved in looking after you, we will share information to other systems. You can opt out of this sharing of your records with our partners at anytime if this sharing is based on your consent.

We may also use external companies to process personal information, such as for archiving purposes. These companies are bound by contractual agreements to ensure information is kept confidential and secure. All employees and sub-contractors engaged by our practice are asked to sign a confidentiality agreement. If a sub-contractor acts as a data processor for [Practice Name] an appropriate contract (art 24-28) will be established for the processing of your information.

Sharing your information without consent

We will normally ask you for your consent, but there are times when we may be required by law to share your information without your consent, for example:

· where there is a serious risk of harm or abuse to you or other people;

· Safeguarding matters and investigations

· where a serious crime, such as assault, is being investigated or where it could be prevented;

· notification of new births;

· where we encounter infectious diseases that may endanger the safety of others, such as meningitis or measles (but not HIV/AIDS);

· where a formal court order has been issued;

· where there is a legal requirement, for example if you had committed a Road Traffic Offence.

How long will we store your information?

We are required under UK law to keep your information and data for the full retention periods as specified by the NHS Records management code of practice for health and social care and national archives requirements. More information on records retention can be found online at (https://digital.nhs.uk/article/1202/Records-Management-Code-of-Practice-for-Health-an

How can you access, amend move the personal data that you have given to us?

Even if we already hold your personal data, you still have various rights in relation to it. To get in touch about these, please contact us. We will seek to deal with your request without undue delay, and in any event in accordance with the requirements of any applicable laws. Please note that we may keep a record of your communications to help us resolve any issues which you raise.

Right to object: If we are using your data and you do not agree, you have the right to object. We will respond to your request within one month (although we may be allowed to extend this period in certain cases). This is NOT an absolute right sometimes we will need to process your data even if you object.

Right to withdraw consent: Where we have obtained your consent to process your personal data for certain activities (for example for a research project, or consent to send you information about us or matters you may be interested in), you may withdraw your consent at any time.

Right to erasure: In certain situations (for example, where we have processed your data unlawfully), you have the right to request us to “erase” your personal data. We will respond to your request within one month (although we may be allowed to extend this period in certain cases) and will only disagree with you if certain limited conditions apply. If we do agree to your request, we will delete your data but will need to keep a note of your name/ other basic details on our register of individuals who would prefer not to be contacted. This enables us to avoid contacting you in the future where your data are collected in unconnected circumstances. If you would prefer us not to do this, you are free to say so.

Right of data portability: If you wish, you have the right to transfer your data from us to another data controller. We will help with this with a GP to GP data transfer and transfer of your hard copy notes.

Primary Care Network

The objective of primary care networks (PCNs) is for group practices together to create more collaborative workforces which ease the pressure of GP’s, leaving them better able to focus on patient care.

Primary Care Networks form a key building block of the NHS long-term plan. Bringing general practices together to work at scale has been a policy priority for some years for a range of reasons, including improving the ability of practices to recruit and retain staff; to manage financial and estates pressures; to provide a wider range of services to patients and to more easily integrate with the wider health and care system.

All GP practices are expected to come together in geographical networks covering populations of approximately 30–50,000 patients by June 2019 if they are to take advantage of additional funding attached to the GP contract. This size is consistent with the size of the primary care homes, which exist in many places in the country, but much smaller than most GP Federations.

This means the practice may share your information with other practices within the PCN to provide you with your care and treatment.

Population Health Management

Population Health Management (or PHM for short) is aimed at improving the health of an entire population. It is being implemented across the NHS and this Practice is taking part in a project as a time limited pilot across named practices in Derby and Derbyshire.

The PHM approach requires health care organisations to work together with communities and partner agencies, for example, GP practices, community service providers, hospitals and other health and social care providers. These organisations will share and combine information with each other in order to get a view of health and services for the population in a particular area. This information sharing is subject to robust security arrangements.

As part of this programme, personal data about your health care will have all identifiers removed (like your name or NHS Number) and replaced with a code which will be linked to information about care received in different health care settings. If we see that an individual might benefit from some additional care or support, we will send the information back to your GP or hospital provider and they will use the code to identify you and offer you relevant services.

As part of this programme your GP and other care providers will send the information they hold on their systems to the North Of England Commissioning Support Unit (NECS). NECS are part of NHS England. More information can be found here https://www.necsu.nhs.uk

NECS will link all the information together. Your GP and other care providers will then review this information and make decisions about the whole population or particular patients that might need additional support. NECS work in partnership with a company called Optum to help them with this work. Both NECS and Optum are legally obliged to protect your information and maintain confidentiality in the same way that your GP or hospital provider is. More information about Optum can be found here www.optum.co.uk.

Health and Social Care Providers are permitted by data protection law to use personal information where it is ‘necessary for medical purposes’. This includes caring for you directly as well as management of health services more generally.

The PHM project is time-limited to 22 weeks. Once the project has completed all de-identified , information processed by NECS / Optum will be securely destroyed. This will not affect any personal information held by your GP or other health or social care providers.

Access to your personal information

Data Subject Access Requests (DSAR): You have a right under the Data Protection legislation to request access to view or to obtain copies of what information the surgery holds about you and to have it amended should it be inaccurate. To request this, you need to do the following:

• Your request should be made to the Practice. (For information from a hospital or other Trust/ NHS organisation you should write direct to them.

• There is no charge to have a copy of the information held about you

• We are required to provide you with information within one month

• You will need to give adequate information (for example full name, address, date of birth, NHS number and details of your request) so that your identity can be verified, and your records located information we hold about you at any time.

What should you do if your personal information changes?

You should tell us so that we can update our records please contact the Practice Manager as soon as any of your details change, this is especially important for changes of address or contact details (such as your mobile

phone number), the practice will from time to time ask you to confirm that the information we currently hold is accurate and up-to-date.

Online Access

You may ask us if you wish to have online access to your medical record. However, there will be certain protocols that we have to follow in order to give you online access, including written consent and production of documents that prove your identity.

Please note that when we give you online access, the responsibility is yours to make sure that you keep your information safe and secure if you do not wish any third party to gain access.

Third parties mentioned on your medical record

Sometimes we record information about third parties mentioned by you to us during any consultation, or contained in letters we receive from other organisations. We are under an obligation to make sure we also protect that third party’s rights as an individual and to ensure that references to them which may breach their rights to confidentiality, are removed before we send any information to any other party including yourself.

Our website

The only website this Privacy Notice applies to is the Surgery’s website. If you use a link to any other website from the Surgery’s website then you will need to read their respective Privacy Notice. We take no responsibility (legal or otherwise) for the content of other websites.

The Surgery’s website uses cookies. For more information on which cookies we use and how we use them, please see our Cookies Policy.

CCTV recording

CCTV is installed on our practice premises covering both the external area of the building and the internal area excluding consulting rooms. Images are held to improve the personal security of patients and staff whilst on the premises, and for the prevention and detection of crime. The images are recorded onto an integral hard drive of the equipment and are overwritten on a rolling basis. Viewing of these digital images is password protected and controlled by the Practice Manager.

Telephone system

Our telephone system records all telephone calls. Recordings are retained for up to three years, and are used periodically for the purposes of seeking clarification where there is a dispute as to what was said and for staff training Access to these recordings is restricted to named senior staff.

Objections / Complaints

Should you have any concerns about how your information is managed at the GP, please contact the GP Practice Manager or the Data Protection Officer as above. If you are still unhappy following a review by the GP practice, you have a right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority: You have a right to complain to the UK supervisory Authority as below.

Information Commissioner:
Wycliffe house
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Tel: 01625 545745
https://ico.org.uk/

If you are happy for your data to be used for the purposes described in this privacy notice, then you do not need to do anything. If you have any concerns about how your data is shared, then please contact the Practice Data Protection Officer.

If you would like to know more about your rights in respect of the personal data we hold about you, please contact the Data Protection Officer as below.

Data Protection Officer:

The Practice Data Protection Officer is Paul Couldrey of PCIG Consulting Limited. Any queries regarding Data Protection issues should be addressed to him at: –
Email: Couldrey@me.com
Postal: PCIG Consulting Limited
7 Westacre Drive
Quarry Bank
Dudley
West Midlands
DY5 2EE

Changes:

It is important to point out that we may amend this Privacy Notice from time to time. If you are dissatisfied with any aspect of our Privacy Notice, please contact the Practice Data Protection Officer.

July 2022 – Addendum

Due to changes within the Medical Examiners Service based at New Cross Hospital, Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust, and how your data may be used/stored/shared, please see https://www.royalwolverhampton.nhs.uk/patientents-amd-visitors.privacy-ico/our-services/royal-wolverhampton-nhs-trust-privacy-notice/ To contact them directly, please go to rwh-tr.medicalexaminerservice@nhs.net or call 01902 445863 / 01902 444072

Dr Mittal’s has a number of patients who book their appointments, request repeat medication and can view certain parts of their medical records online.

Patient Access have now improved their system to allow parents and Carers to be authorised to all of the above-mentioned functions for children or the people they care for.

Any patient or Carer wishing to have proxy access will need to sign up to this service by completing a form available at the Practice Reception.

We aim to treat our patients courteously at all times and expect our patients to treat our staff in a similarly respectful way.

We take seriously any threatening, abusive or violent behaviour against any of our staff or patients. If a patient is violent or abusive, they will be warned to stop their behaviour. If they persist, we may exercise our right to take action to have them removed, immediately if necessary, from our list of patients. We have a zero tolerance policy towards violence and aggression.

This practice operates within the NHS Zero Tolerance Policy on violent or aggressive patients (and relatives).

We believe that everyone has a right to feel safe from violence or verbal abuse. Therefore we take any acts of violence, verbal aggression or intimidation very seriously.

Acts of violence will be reported to the police and patients involved will be removed from the practice list and banned from the premises.

Verbal aggression (including shouting & swearing)  may be treated in the same way as acts of violence. Otherwise a warning will be issued and if the behaviour is repeated, then the patient may be asked to leave the list.

All staff at the practice can report problems and this includes aggression or swearing over the phone.