Confidentiality
Anyone, of any age, can come to see the doctor or nurses in the secure
knowledge that what they say is private, and cannot be released without their
consent. This practice will always uphold this principle to the fullest.
Friends or relatives wishing to discuss the problems of another are advised to
let that person know so that they can give their consent to the practice prior
to any discussion.
CONFIDENTIALITY OF RECORDS/INFORMATION SHARING
This practice complies with Data Protection and Access to Medical Records
legislation. Information can be shared in the following circumstances:
If you are referred to another doctor or health professional e.g. hospital, extended
services or within the practice to further your medical treatment, necessary
information will go with the referral, it is assumed that you agree to this if
you have agreed to the referral.
Anonymised patient information will also be used at local and national level
to help the Department of Health and government plan services to improve patient
care.
If you have any worries about the use of anonymised or other information please
speak to the practice Manager.
We have a duty to provide information in circumstances of child protection.
Practices undergo regular visits by external assessors to verify the quality
of care provided to patients. During these assessment visits a random selection
of patient records will be made available to the team – we currently obtain
written consent from each patient to allow access. If you wish to allow access
to your records for these assessment visits and have not completed a consent
form already, please request a form from reception.
Access To Patient Information
Healthcare professionals within the NHS and the private sector have access to patient information held at the practice which is relevant to the specific consultant to whom referral is needed.
Written authorisation is required from patients in cases where copies of the medical records are requested from solicitors/insurance companies or for employment purposes.
Under the Data Protection Act 1988, patients have the right of access to copies of their own medical records whether they are stored in computerised form, handwritten or stored in some other form.
Patient Responsibilities
- We have a high demand for appointments. If you are
unable to attend your booked appointment, please inform those on reception as
soon as possible so that it may be given to someone else.
- Each appointment is for one person only and additional appointments should be
made for others requiring a consultation.
- Requests for help and advice for non-urgent matters should be made during surgery
hours only.
- Home visits should only be requested for patients who are seriously ill or housebound.
- Requests for visits out of surgery hours should only be made for true urgencies
and not routine matters.
We ask that patients treat all our staff and doctors with courtesy; please
bear in mind that the reception staff have a very difficult job to do.
Compliments, Comments & Complaints
Our aim is to give the best possible service to our patients and we try to deal swiftly with any problems that may occur. We offer an in-house complaints procedure to deal with comments, concerns and complaints about the services we provide. A leaflet is available on request or full details can be obtained from the practice manager.
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