You can be assured that your medical records are safe with Pendleside Medical Practice. We will only share data that identifies you under the following circumstances:
- With other health care professionals (hospital or community staff) as part of an agreed plan of treatment
- With your explicit consent. e.g. for participation in research studies
- In circumstances where it is in the interests of your health and you are not able to give consent, e.g. if you are unconscious
- Where we are obliged to divulge information under the Health & Social Care Act 2012, e.g. in the case of a national emergency or pandemic
- Where we are required to do so for health service planning purposes and you have not explicitly opted out of having your data shared (see below)
- Please see our privacy notices for detailed information.
Our strict rules about confidentiality mean that we will not discuss your medical affairs even with your close family unless you give us permission to do so. This includes details of appointments you have made. If you would like your partner, parent, son/daughter or carer to be able to speak to us on your behalf, you must tell us beforehand. Please provide out Reception Team with a signed consent form if you require an ongoing arrangement for sharing consent. You can withdraw your consent at any time.
Information about your health and care helps the NHS to improve your individual care, speed up diagnosis, plan your local services and research new treatment.
You have the right to control how medical information about you is shared, disseminated or sold, for purposes other than your direct medical care – so called secondary uses (or purposes).
Secondary uses include projects involved in risk stratification, population health management, national clinical audits, research, healthcare planning, commissioning of healthcare services by CCG’s, commercial and even political uses. You can control your personal confidential information by opting out of data sharing.
There are 2 types of data sharing.
Type 1 – Opt Out?
A type 1 opt out prevents information being shared outside a GP practice for purposes other than direct care.
Who do you notify of your decision to opt out?
Please print and sign an opt out form and either bring the original to the practice for processing or take a photo of it and email it to us at pendleside.medicalpractice@nhs.net so that we can update your data sharing preferences.
Type 2 – Opt Out – now known as National Data Opt-out
A type 2 opt out/National Data Opt-out prevents information being shared outside NHS Digital for purposes beyond the individual’s direct care. The following link will take you to full current information regarding these opt-outs
Who do you notify of your decision to opt out?
Type 2 opt outs are arranged by NHS digital. If you are aged 13 or older you can go to Make your choice about sharing data from your health records – NHS and opt out online
Other ways to make a choice
You can also make or change a choice for:
- yourself by phone, email or post
- someone else by email or post
NHS Digital Contact Centre phone number : 0300 303 5678 – Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm (excluding bank holidays).
If you’re a parent or legal guardian and you want to opt your children out, you must complete the opt-out form.
Once you’ve completed the form, you can email it to the Contact Centre – enquires@nhsdigital.nhs.uk
Alternatively, you can post the form to:
National Data Opt Out, Contact Centre, NHS Digital, HM Government, 7 & 8 Wellington Place, Leeds. LS1 4AP
What is Pendleside Medical Practice doing to inform patients of this change?
To make sure that as many patients as possible know about the scheme and have the opportunity to make a choice, Pendleside Medical Practice are taking the following steps:
- All staff fully aware to support you with any queries you may have
- Information available in the practice
- Information on social media
- Information on website and links above to NHS websites for further information
Summary Care Record (SCR)
Your Summary Care Record is different to the above sharing for secondary uses. Your SCR is used to assist in provision of care for you. Access to SCR information means that care in other setting is safer, reducing the risk of prescribing errors. it also helps avoid delays to urgent care.
At a minimum, the SCR holds important information about;
- current medication
- allergies and details or any previous bad reactions to medicines
- the name, address, date of birth and NHS number of the patient
Additional Information in the SCR, such as details of long-term conditions, significant medical history, or specific communications needs, is now included by default for patients with an SCR, unless they have previously told the NHS that they did not want this information to be shared. There will also be a temporary change to include COVID-19 specific codes in relation to suspected, confirmed, Shielded Patient List and other COVID-19 related information within the Additional Information.
All of our patients who have not chosen to opt out have a Summary Care Record that can be accessed, with the patient’s consent, by hospital and out of hours staff.
You may choose to opt out of having a Summary Care Record.
The website below will help you to decide on the risks benefits.
http://digital.nhs.uk/services/summary-care-recrods-scr
If you would like to opt out, please print off and complete the following consent form and return it to the surgery
National Diabetes Audit (NDA)
Pendleside Medical Practice is taking part in an important national project about people at risk of diabetes and diabetes care and treatment in the NHS. The project is called the National Diabetes Audit (NDA). The NDA has always collected patient identifiable data from health care providers since it began in 2004.
Patients do not need to be individually consented but we want to raise awareness of the HDA. This is know as ‘fair processing’.
If you have diabetes, non-diabetic hyperglycaemia, impaired glucose tolerance or pre-diabetes, your GP practice will share information about your diabetes care and treatment with the NDA. The type of information, and how it is shared, is controlled by law and enforced by strict rules of confidentiality and security.
Taking part in the NDA shows that this GP practice is committed to reducing diabetes and improving care for people with diabetes.
The NDA is a mandatory collection for the NHS. NHS England uses powers under section 254 of the Health and Social Care Act 2012 to direct NHS digital to collect the data. The information is required by NHS Digital under section 259 of the 2012 Act to comply with the National Diabetes Audit Directions 2017.
In line with section 259, all organisations in England that are in scope of the NDA Data Provisions Notice, must comply with the requirement and provide information to NHS Digital in the form, manner and period specified.
Where a collection is directed under this mechanism, the national data opt out does not apply. Therefore, all patients’ records must be submitted to NHS Digital.
This is detailed in section 6.4 ‘When does a national data opt-out not apply? of the National data opt-out operational policy guidance document
NHS Digital is obliged to apply the national data opt out if they supply the data onwards to any other organisation. For example, if a research body applies for NDA data via Data Access Request Service (DARS) run by NHS Digital, then they are required to apply the NDO preference from the patient to the data before supplying the data extract to the research body. They do this by checking the patient cohort against the national register.
General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR)
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 give you the best possible advice and care. This information is only available to those involved in your care and you should never be asked for personal medical information by anyone not involved in your care.
From 25th May 2018 the law is changing with the addition of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This regulation will have an impact on how we handle your data. Further information is available in the Patient Privacy Notice.