How You Can Help Us to Help You

Please keep us informed of changes in address and phone numbers. We may need to contact you inform you of results or cancelled appointments.

The Protection and Use of Patient Information

You will only be asked for information about yourself in order that you can receive proper care and treatment. This information together with details of your care is kept in your patient notes.

Data Protection

This practice operates in compliance with 'The Data Protection Act 1998 and The Freedom of Information Act 2000.'

The practice keeps your medical records on computer. Access is strictly limited to the staff at the surgery and the practice is registered under the Data Protection Act. Under the terms of the act you are entitled to know whether we hold personal information about you on the computer.

You have a right of access to your health records by arrangement
Anyone working at the practice and in the NHS as a whole has a legal duty to keep information about you confidential. Information about you is only disclosed when you have given express permission, for example, to allow your doctor to complete insurance or other types of reports. From time to time NHS auditors carry out routine checks of practice records and it may be necessary to verify details from patient records. Such checks are carried out in accordance with strict protocols agreed with the Strategic Health Authority, the Local Medical Committee and the Community Health Council.
See Access to Medical Records Policy.

If you have any concerns or objections about your records being inspected for these purposes please notify the practice. Your wishes will be respected.

Private Referrals

The interface between the practice as an NHS organisation and private health care sometimes causes difficulties.
Click here for details of the Practice policy which may help to clarify the issues.

Access to Medical Records Policy

In accordance with the terms of the Data Protection Act 1998, patients have a legal right of access to their medical record. The Practice is happy to comply with any request from a patient to view the whole or part of their record. In order that a permanent record of such a request can be kept, the request must be received from the patient in writing. This will then be scanned into the patient’s notes.

The Practice will respond to the request within 21 days, inviting the patient to make an appointment with their GP to view the notes. Patient notes frequently need interpretation for the layman and the GP can help the patient understand the content of their medical record.

Under the Data Protection Act 1998, the GP can refuse access to all or part of the record if they feel that such access may cause serious harm to the patient or another person, or if the notes contain information regarding a third party which cannot be removed.

Where a refusal is made by the Practice, the patient may refer the case to the Information Commissioner for adjudication. The Commissioner may be contacted at:
Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire, SK9 5AF
Telephone: 08456 30 60 60 or 01625 54 57 45
Fax: 01625 524510