Practice Policies & Patient Information
Access My Medical Records
Identifiable patient information will only be shared within the Practice Team and, in the case of referral, to the Clinician to whom the patient is being referred. Disclosure of identifiable patient information to any other outside agency will only be undertaken after receiving written permission from the patient.
The Access to Health Record (AHR) Act came into being in 1992, allowing people to have the right to have sight of their medical records. Under the Data protection Act 1998, you have the right to access all of your health records including those held by your GP.
If you wish to view the records held by the practice, your request should be put in writing for the attention of The Practice Manager.
If you need access to any health records that are held by any community based site, including the following:
- Royal Leamington Spa Rehab Hospital
- Ellen Badger Hospital
- Bramcote Hospital
Or any of the following services:
- Health Vistors
- Pysiotherapy
- Child Health
- Occupational Health
- Occupational Therapy
- District Nursing
You can request the relevant forms from NHS Warwickshire directly by writing to:
AHR / FOI Officer
Westgate House
Market Street
Warwick
CV34 4DE
Car Park Cameras
You may be aware that our car park now has ANPR cameras. If you are using our car park please accept this message as a reminder to enter your car registration details should you have an appointment at the surgery. There is no need to enter car details if you do not have an appointment unless advised to do so by the receptionist.
CONFIDENTIALITY
We are committed to protecting your privacy and will only use information collected lawfully in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998 (which is overseen by the Information Commissioner’s Office), Human Rights Act, the Common Law Duty of Confidentiality, and the NHS Codes of Confidentiality and Security.
All of our staff, contractors and committee members receive appropriate and on-going training to ensure they are aware of their personal responsibilities and have contractual obligations to uphold confidentiality, enforceable through disciplinary procedures.
We maintain our duty of confidentiality to you at all times. 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), or where the law requires information to be passed on and / or in accordance with the new information sharing principle i.e. “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. They should be supported by the policies of their employers, regulators and professional bodies.
Your information may be used within the GP practice for clinical audit to monitor the quality of the service provided or ensure we are providing appropriate care.
FAIR PROCESSING NOTICE
This fair processing notice explains why our practice collects information about you and how that information may be used and shared.
The employees and partners of the practice use electronic and paper records to create and maintain an in-depth history of your NHS medical care at the practice and elsewhere, to help ensure you receive the best possible healthcare. Anyone who accesses your data within the practice can only do so using a ‘smartcard’ that identifies him/her and what he/she accessed.
We comply with Data Protection Act in ensuring your personal information is as confidential and secure as possible.
WHAT INFORMATION DO WE HOLD?
Records which this GP Practice hold about you may include the following information;
- Details about you, such as your address, legal representative, emergency contact details
- Any contact the surgery has had with you, such as appointments, telephone conversations and letters.
- Notes and reports about your physical (including sexual) and mental health
- Details about your treatment and medications
- Results of investigations such as laboratory tests, x-rays etc
- Relevant information from other health professionals, relatives or those who care for you
- Reports from social services such as child protection reports or police reports if relevant to the care of you or your family
- Private reports sent, at your request, to other organisations
Freedom of Information – Publication Scheme
The Freedom of Information Act 2000 obliges the practice to produce a Publication Scheme. A Publication Scheme is a guide to the “classes” of information the practice intends to routinely make available. The scheme is available from the practice manager. Please request a copy in writing.
GP Earnings
NHS England requires that the net earnings of doctors engaged in the practice is publicised, and the required disclosure is show below. However it should be noted that the prescribed method of calculating earnings is potentially misleading because it takes no account of how much time doctors spend working in the practice, and should not be used to form any judgement about GP earnings, nor to make any comparison with any other practice.
The average earnings for GPs working at Beech Tree Medical Practice in the last financial year was £79,693 before tax and national insurance. This is for 2 full time GPs and 1 part-time salaried GP who worked in the practice for more than six months.
GP Online Services
If you wish to, you can now use the internet to book appointments with a GP, request repeat prescriptions for any medications you take regularly and look at your medication history and allergy record online.
Before you apply for online access to your record, there are some other things to consider. Although the chances of any of these things happening are very small, you will be asked that you have read and understood the following before you are given log in details.
Choosing to share your information with someone – It’s up to you whether or not you share your information with others – perhaps family members or carers. It’s your choice, but also your responsibility to keep the information safe and secure.
Coercion – If you think you may be pressured into revealing details from your patient record to someone else against your will, it is best that you do not register for access at this time.
Misunderstood information – Your medical record is designed to be used by clinical professionsals to ensure that you receive the best possible care.
Information about someone else – If you spot something in the record that is not about you or notice any other errors, please log out of the system immediately and contact the practice as soon as possible.
The practice has the right to remove online access to services for anyone that doesn’t use them responsibility.
IRIS (Identification and referral to improve safety)
If you are a man or woman being hurt by someone in your family, are afraid of someone at home, or are in a violent relationship, you can speak to your doctor, nurse and other staff working here in private.’
click here to access a link for help
NATIONAL DATA EXTRACTIONS (Also known as GPES)
The Health and Social Care Act 2012 allows NHS Digital to collate personal confidential data from GP practices without seeking your specific consent. This is extracted in order to make increased use of information from medical records and either used just by the NHS with the intention of improving healthcare and the quality of care delivered to patients or may be sold to external companies such as universities or commercial organisations. Please see below if you do not want your data used in this way.
More information about how NHS Digital uses your data can be found at http://content.digital.nhs.uk/gpes
Practice Charter
Our approach to your healthcare
Our aim is to provide a friendly, yet effective, family GP service and promote a healthy lifestyle to all our patients.
Patient’s rights and responsibilities
As a patient you have the right to a) be registered with a named doctor b) change doctor if desired [but please remember that you may have to see any of the doctors if your need is urgent] c) receive emergency care d) receive appropriate drugs and medicines e) be referred for specialist or second opinion if they and the GP agrees f) see your medical records or a copy, subject to certain laws g) know that by law, everyone working for the NHS must keep the contents of your medical records private. With this right comes responsibilities for the public. That means being a) courteous to staff at all times b) be prompt for all appointments c) be responsible for cancelling appointments in adequate time.
Who has 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. You have the right to know what information we hold about you. Please ask the receptionist if you wish to see or obtain a copy of your record. If you are referred to a hospital specialist you are also welcome to request a copy of the referral letter.
Policy on violent and abusive patients
We aim to treat our patients courteously at all times and expect our patients to treat 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.
Change of patient’s personal details
If you change your name, address or contact details (such as your home telephone number, MOBILE telephone number or email address) please let us know as soon as possible so that we can update our records. If you are receiving treatment at a hospital it might also be a good idea to inform them of any changes so that both our records are consistent when we communicate with them. We do not routinely let the hospitals know when you tell us your changes, that is for you to do.
When should I see a nurse?
Nurses based at our practice treat patients for a wide range of common conditions (e.g. minor injuries/illnesses, removing stitches, immunisations and so on). You can expect to see a nurse within two working days. Our practice nurses are also specially trained to run routine clinics for certain conditions, such as Diabetes and Asthma. (Each of our nurses specialises in a different area, so you need to book ahead with the most appropriate nurse). Our helpful reception staff will be able to advise whether a nurse appointment is suitable.
Nursing care at home
We work closely with other healthcare professionals who are part of the Primary Health Care Team working in the community, such as the District Nursing Service, midwives and Health Visitors. These services are provided by the Local Primary Care Trust and are based at the Orchard Centre.
If you have an illness or incapacity that means that you need nursing care in your own home, the district nurses will visit you. Patients who are likely to benefit from this service include the housebound, the elderly, people with a terminal illness, and those who have been recently been discharged from hospital. District nurses provide wound care, palliative care, continence advice and advice on co-ordination care packages. If you move permanently into a care home locally, the district nurse may be able to continue your care.
How can patients have their say
We welcome any suggestions you have for our improving service. These can either be made to the Practice Manager, the Doctors or the Reception staff or via this website.
RISK STRATIFICATION
Risk stratification is a process for identifying and managing patients who are at a higher risk of emergency hospital admission. This may be because patients have a long term condition such as COPD, cancer or are more frail. NHS England encourages GPs to use risk stratification tools as part of their local strategies for supporting patients with long-term conditions and help reduce the patients’ risk of hospital admissions.
Information about you is collected from a number of sources including NHS Trusts and from this GP Practice. Your risk is then ‘scored’ after analysis of your anonymous information using computer programmes. Your information is only provided back to your GP or member of your care team in an identifiable form. Risk stratification enables your GP to focus on the prevention of ill health and not just the treatment of sickness.
SHARING YOUR DATA OUTSIDE THE PRACTICE
Information held about you may be used to help protect the health of the public and to help the Department of Health manage the NHS. Some of this information will be extracted and held centrally and used for statistical purposes. Where we do this, we take strict measures to ensure that individual patients cannot be identified.
We currently only share information from your records on an individual basis either by fax, letter or courier but with improvements in information technology and strict information governance standards, it is becoming possible to share your GP records across Coventry & Warwickshire Health & Social Care. We will only allow this to happen with your consent, so that you are able to allow doctors, nurses and other health and social care services to see all the information held on your GP records.
The following are examples of the types of organisations that we are likely to share information with:
- NHS and specialist hospitals, Trusts
- Independent Contractors such as dentists, opticians, pharmacists
- Private and Voluntary Sector Providers
- Ambulance Trusts
- Clinical Commissioning Groups and NHS England
- Social Care Services and Local Authorities
- Education Services
- Police, Fire and Rescue Services
Any patient can choose to withdraw their consent to their data being used in this way. When the Practice is about to participate in any new data-sharing scheme we will make patients aware by displaying prominent notices in the surgery and on our website at least four weeks before the scheme is due to start. These schemes are only for direct care so you (or your carer) will be present when the information is accessed and will be asked for consent again, before your records are opened.
A patient can object to their personal information being shared with other health care providers but if this limits the treatment that you can receive then the doctor will explain this to you at the time.
Suggestions or Complaints
We make every effort to give the best service possible to everyone who attends our practice.
However, we are aware that things can go wrong resulting in a patient feeling that they have a genuine cause for complaint. If this is so, we would wish for the matter to be settled as quickly, and as amicably, as possible. Simply contact Irene, the Practice Manager and she will set all the necessary wheels in motion.
Further written information is available on the complaints procedure from reception.
Website Privacy Statement
- Welcome to Beech Tree Medical Practice’s privacy notice. We respect your privacy and are committed to protecting your personal data. This privacy notice will inform you as to how we look after your personal data when you visit our website (regardless of where you visit it from) and tell you about your privacy rights and how the law protects you.
Purpose of this privacy notice
- This privacy notice aims to give you information on how we collect and processes your personal data through your use of this website. This website is not intended for children and we do not knowingly collect data relating to children.
3. It is important that you read this privacy notice together with any other privacy notice or fair processing notice we may provide on specific occasions when we are collecting or processing personal data about you so that you are fully aware of how and why we are using your data. This privacy notice supplements the other notices and is not intended to override them.
Controller
4. The Practice (Beech Tree Medical Practice) is the controller and is responsible for your personal data (collectively referred to as “the Practice”, “we”, “us” or “our” in this privacy notice).
5. If you have any questions about this privacy notice, including any requests to exercise your legal rights, please contact Cheryl Herbert ([email protected]).
6. You have the right to make a complaint at any time to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK supervisory authority for data protection issues (www.ico.org.uk). We would, however, appreciate the chance to deal with your concerns before you approach the ICO so please contact us in the first instance.
Changes to the privacy notice and your duty to inform us of changes
7. It is important that the personal data we hold about you is accurate and current. Please keep us informed if your personal data changes during your relationship with us.
Third-party links
8. This website may include links to third-party websites, plug-ins and applications. Clicking on those links or enabling those connections may allow third parties to collect or share data about you. We do not control these third-party websites and are not responsible for their privacy statements. When you leave our website, we encourage you to read the privacy notice of every website you visit.
The data we collect about you
9. Personal data, or personal information, means any information about an individual from which that person can be identified. It does not include data where the identity has been removed (anonymous data).
10. We may collect, use, store and transfer different kinds of personal data about you which we have grouped together follows:
- Identity Data includes first name, maiden name, last name, username or similar identifier, marital status, title, date of birth and gender.
- Contact Data includes billing address, delivery address, email address and telephone numbers.
- Financial Data includes bank account and payment card details.
- Transaction Data includes details about payments to and from you and other details of products and services you have purchased from us.
- Technical Data includes internet protocol (IP) address, your login data, browser type and version, time zone setting and location, browser plug-in types and versions, operating system and platform and other technology on the devices you use to access this website.
- Profile Data includes your username and password, purchases or orders made by you, your interests, preferences, feedback and survey responses.
- Usage Data includes information about how you use our website, products and services.
- Marketing and Communications Data includes your preferences in receiving marketing from us and our third parties and your communication preferences.
11. We also collect, use and share Aggregated Data such as statistical or demographic data for any purpose. Aggregated Data may be derived from your personal data but is not considered personal data in law as this data does not directly or indirectly reveal your identity. For example, we may aggregate your Usage Data to calculate the percentage of users accessing a specific website feature. However, if we combine or connect Aggregated Data with your personal data so that it can directly or indirectly identify you, we treat the combined data as personal data which will be used in accordance with this privacy notice.
12. We do not collect any Special Categories of Personal Data about you (this includes details about your race or ethnicity, religious or philosophical beliefs, sex life, sexual orientation, political opinions, trade union membership, information about your health and genetic and biometric data). Nor do we collect any information about criminal convictions and offences.
How is your personal data collected?
13. We use different methods to collect data from and about you including through direct interactions. For example, you may give us your identity, Contact and Financial Data by filling in forms or by corresponding with us by post, phone, email or otherwise.
How we use your personal data
14. We will only use your personal data when the law allows us to. Most commonly, we will use your personal data in the following circumstances:
- Where we need to perform the contract we are about to enter into or have entered into with you.
- Where it is necessary for our legitimate interests (or those of a third party) and your interests and fundamental rights do not override those interests.
- Where we need to comply with a legal or regulatory obligation.
15. Note that we may process your personal data for more than one lawful ground depending on the specific purpose for which we are using your data. Please contact us if you need details about the specific legal ground we are relying on to process your personal data.
Opting out
16. You can ask us or third parties to stop sending you marketing messages at any time.
Change of purpose
17. We will only use your personal data for the purposes for which we collected it, unless we reasonably consider that we need to use it for another reason and that reason is compatible with the original purpose. If you wish to get an explanation as to how the processing for the new purpose is compatible with the original purpose, please contact us.
18. If we need to use your personal data for an unrelated purpose, we will notify you and we will explain the legal basis which allows us to do so.
19. Please note that we may process your personal data without your knowledge or consent, in compliance with the above rules, where this is required or permitted by law.
Disclosures of your personal data
20. We require all third parties to respect the security of your personal data and to treat it in accordance with the law. We do not allow our third-party service providers to use your personal data for their own purposes and only permit them to process your personal data for specified purposes and in accordance with our instructions.
21. Whenever we transfer your personal data out of the EEA, we ensure a similar degree of protection is afforded to it by ensuring at least one of the following safeguards is implemented and we will only transfer your personal data to countries that have been deemed to provide an adequate level of protection for personal data by the European Commission.
Data security
22. We have put in place appropriate security measures to prevent your personal data from being accidentally lost, used or accessed in an unauthorised way, altered or disclosed. In addition, we limit access to your personal data to those employees, agents, contractors and other third parties who have a business need to know. They will only process your personal data on our instructions and they are subject to a duty of confidentiality.
23. We have put in place procedures to deal with any suspected personal data breach and will notify you and any applicable regulator of a breach where we are legally required to do so.
Data retention
24. We will only retain your personal data for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes we collected it for, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements.
25. To determine the appropriate retention period for personal data, we consider the amount, nature, and sensitivity of the personal data, the potential risk of harm from unauthorised use or disclosure of your personal data, the purposes for which we process your personal data and whether we can achieve those purposes through other means, and the applicable legal requirements.
26. In some circumstances you can ask us to delete your data. In some circumstances we may anonymise your personal data (so that it can no longer be associated with you) for research or statistical purposes in which case we may use this information indefinitely without further notice to you.
Insurers and Legal Advisers to the Practice
27. In some circumstances the practice may need to contact Practice Insurers or seek Legal Advice. Should this need to happen all patient details will be anonymised.
Your legal rights
28. Under certain circumstances, you have rights under data protection laws in relation to your personal data. Your rights are to:
- Request access to your personal data (commonly known as a “data subject access request”). This enables you to receive a copy of the personal data we hold about you and to check that we are lawfully processing it
- Request correction of the personal data that we hold about you. This enables you to have any incomplete or inaccurate data we hold about you corrected, though we may need to verify the accuracy of the new data you provide to us.
- Request erasure of your personal data. This enables you to ask us to delete or remove personal data where there is no good reason for us continuing to process it. You also have the right to ask us to delete or remove your personal data where you have successfully exercised your right to object to processing (see below), where we may have processed your information unlawfully or where we are required to erase your personal data to comply with local law. Note, however, that we may not always be able to comply with your request of erasure for specific legal reasons which will be notified to you, if applicable, at the time of your request.
- Object to processing of your personal data where we are relying on a legitimate interest (or those of a third party) and there is something about your particular situation which makes you want to object to processing on this ground as you feel it impacts on your fundamental rights and freedoms. You also have the right to object where we are processing your personal data for direct marketing purposes. In some cases, we may demonstrate that we have compelling legitimate grounds to process your information which override your rights and freedoms.
- Request restriction of processing of your personal data. This enables you to ask us to suspend the processing of your personal data in the following scenarios: (a) if you want us to establish the data’s accuracy; (b) where our use of the data is unlawful but you do not want us to erase it; (c) where you need us to hold the data even if we no longer require it as you need it to establish, exercise or defend legal claims; or (d) you have objected to our use of your data but we need to verify whether we have overriding legitimate grounds to use it.
- Request the transfer of your personal data to you or to a third party. We will provide to you, or a third party you have chosen, your personal data in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format. Note that this right only applies to automated information which you initially provided consent for us to use or where we used the information to perform a contract with you.
- Withdraw consent at any time where we are relying on consent to process your personal data. However, this will not affect the lawfulness of any processing carried out before you withdraw your consent. If you withdraw your consent, we may not be able to provide certain products or services to you. We will advise you if this is the case at the time you withdraw your consent.
29. You will not have to pay a fee to access your personal data (or to exercise any of the other rights). However, we may charge a reasonable fee if your request is clearly unfounded, repetitive or excessive. Alternatively, we may refuse to comply with your request in these circumstances.
30.We may need to request specific information from you to help us confirm your identity and ensure your right to access your personal data (or to exercise any of your other rights). This is a security measure to ensure that personal data is not disclosed to any person who has no right to receive it. We may also contact you to ask you for further information in relation to your request to speed up our response.
31. We try to respond to all legitimate requests within one month. Occasionally it may take us longer than a month if your request is particularly complex or you have made a number of requests. In this case, we will notify you and keep you updated.
what if I want to see my records?
You have a right under the Data Protection Act 1998 to access/view information the Practice holds about you, and to have it amended or removed should it be inaccurate. This is known as ‘the right of subject access’. We are very keen for you to have access to help you manage your own health and maintain the quality of the records about your health. With some provisos, we are now able to give most adults access to their records on-line if they wish. If you would like on-line access, please ask our receptionists.
You can also request a copy of your records in paper form. If you wish to do this, you will need to do the following,
- Your request must be made in writing to the GP – for information from the hospital you should write direct to them
- There will be a charge to have a printed copy of the information held about you
- We are required to respond to you within 40 days
- 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
NOTIFICATION
The Data Protection Act 1998 requires organisations to register a notification with the Information Commissioner to describe the purposes for which they process personal and sensitive information.
This information is publicly available on the Information Commissioners Office website www.ico.org.uk
The practice is registered with the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) as a data controller under the Data Protection Act 1998. The registration number is Z5146666 and can be viewed online in the public register at http://ico.org.uk/what_we_cover/register_of_data_controllers
OBJECTIONS/COMPLAINTS
Should you have any concerns about how your information is managed at the practice, please contact the Practice Manager. If you are still unhappy following a review by the GP practice, you can then complain to the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) via their website (www.ico.gov.uk).
If you are happy for your data to be extracted and used for the purposes described in this fair processing notice then you do not need to do anything.
If you do not want your personal data being extracted and leaving the GP practice for any of the purposes described, you need to let us know as soon as possible so please speak to the receptionist.
There are 3 levels of opt-out to prevent your data being shared. Each opt-out requires the practice to add a different code to your medical notes. (Please be aware that certain regulations, such as child protection and court orders may over-rule your choices.)
- You do not want your data to leave the practice even for direct patient care. (9Ndo Express dissent for Summary Care Record dataset upload)
- You are happy to share your data for your care but do not want NHS Digital extracting your data. (See below for type 1 code and how to over-ride this code if patient changes their mind.)
- You are happy to share your data for your care and improving public health but do not want NHS Digital selling or sharing your data to third parties. (See below for type 2 code and how to over-ride this code if patient changes their mind.)
All patients have the right to change their minds and reverse a previous decision. Please contact the practice if you change your mind regarding any previous choice.
Known as: | Description | READ2 | CTV3 | SNOMED CT |
Type 1 | Dissent from secondary use of general practitioner patient identifiable data | 9Nu0 | XaZ89 | 827241000000103 |
Dissent withdrawn from secondary use of general practitioner patient identifiable data | 9Nu1 | XaZ8A | 827261000000102 | |
Type 2 | Dissent from disclosure of personal confidential data by NHS Digital | 9Nu4 | XaaVL | 851561000000100 |
Dissent withdrawn from disclosure of personal confidential data by NHS Digital | 9Nu5 | XaaVM | 881581000000109 |