Why we collect information about you
Your doctor and other health professionals caring for you, keep records about your health and any treatment you receive from the NHS. These help ensure that you receive the best possible care from us. The information may be written down (manual records) or held in computer. These records may include:
- Basic details such as name, address, date of birth, NHS number
- Contacts we have had with you
- Notes/reports regarding treatment you have received
- Results of investigations, such as X-rays, lab tests
- Relevant information from other health professionals
How your records are used to help you
- Your records are used to guide and administer the care you receive, ensuring that:
- Your doctor, nurse or other health care professional have accurate & up to date information to assess your health
- We can contact you for health checks
- Full information is available should you need to see another doctor or be referred to a specialist or another part of the NHS.
How your records are used to help the NHS
Your records may also be used to help us:
- Look after the health of the general public
- Audit clinical care and NHS accounts
- Prepare statistics on our performance
- Review the care we provide to ensure it is of the highest standard
- Teach & train other health professionals
Wherever possible, we will remove any details that identify you. Where it is not possible to anonymise information, we will only use information for essential NHS purposes as permitted or required by law. Unless there are nationally agreed procedures & agreements we will always endeavour to gain your permission before carrying out research that involves you personally.
How we keep your records secure & confidential
Everyone working for the NHS has a legal duty to keep information about you confidential & secure.
We may need to share some information about you so we can work together for your benefit. We will only pass on information about you if others involved in your care have a genuine need for it. Anyone who receives information from us is also under a legal duty to keep it confidential & secure.
We are required by law to report certain information to the authorities, occasion when we must do this include:
- Notification of new births
- Where we encounter infectious diseases, which may endanger the safety of others, e.g. meningitis or measles
- Where a formal court order has been issued
Who are our partner organisations?
The principal partner organisations with which information may be shared are:
Subject to strict protocols, your information may also be shared with:
- Other NHS providers, e.g. dentists, opticians
- Social Services
- Voluntary sector providers
- Private sector providers
How we ensure your information is accurate
We have a duty to ensure you information is accurate and up to date.
You can help us by telling us if you think information we hold about you is wrong. In particular, please let us know if you move house, change your name or any other details we have on your record.
How you can get access to your own health record
The Data Protection Act 1998 allows you to find out what information is held about you on computer and in certain manual records. This is known as your "right of subject access" If you wish to see them, you should make a written request to the Practice Manager. Such requests may be subject to an administrative/disclosure charge.