Practice Policies

Confidentiality/Privacy

All our patients’ records are held under strict rules of confidentiality on our computer and/or in written form. You have a personal right of access to your records and, with your agreement, relatives, friends and carers can be kept up to date with the progress of your treatment.

We are sometimes involved in research projects which have been approved by the Local Research Ethics Committee. If anything to do with the research would involve you personally, you would be contacted to see if you were willing to participate.

If you have any concerns about confidentiality, please speak to your doctor or to the Practice Manager.

Sharing your records: your personal information

Information about you is used in a number of ways by the NHS and social care services to support your personal care and to improve health and social care services for everyone.

The Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) is the national NHS organisation with a legal responsibility to collect data as people make use of NHS and social care services. The data is used both at a local level and nationally to help with planning, managing your care, supporting research into new treatments, identifying trends and issues and so forth, and is used to try to make services better for all.

You can, however, choose not to have information about you shared or used for any purpose beyond providing your own treatment or care.

Your right to opt out

You can choose not to have anything that could identify you shared beyond your GP practice. You can also choose for the HSCIC not to share information it collects from all health providers any further.

If you have previously told your GP practice that you don’t want the HSCIC to share your personal confidential information for purposes other than your own care and treatment, your opt-out will have been implemented by the HSCIC from April 29 2016. It will remain in place unless you change it.

Simply contact your GP either to register an opt-out or end an opt-out you have already registered and they will update your medical record. Your GP practice will also be able to confirm whether or not you have registered an opt-out in the past.

You can find more information about how the HSCIC handles your information and choices and how it manages your opt-out on the HSCIC website www.hscic.gov.uk/yourinfo

Chaperone Policy

We have clinical staff who have been trained to act as chaperones.  The role of a chaperone is to provide reassurance and emotional support for a patient whilst undergoing a procedure they may find embarrassing or uncomfortable. If you would like a chaperone to be present for an examination, please ask the doctor or nurse. They will be very pleased to arrange one for you.

Please tell the receptionist if you if you know in advance that you would like a chaperone to be present. Let us know if you would like to see a copy of our chaperone policy.

Safeguarding

We have child and adult safeguarding policies in place. Further information on child safeguarding is available at www.oscb.org.uk and information on adult safeguarding can be found at www.osab.co.uk