Right of access to your medical records
If you want to access your medical records contact the practice and we will provide you with the details of how to do this. You will be asked to complete an application form.
The people responsible for your care may decide that seeing your records might be detrimental to your physical or mental health. In this instance your request may be denied or you may only be shown part of your record.
Your health records are safe with us
We need information about you, your medical history and who else, apart from your family, is responsible for your care, for example social services, or other care providers. We record the information in your health record. This could be a paper record or an electronic one. These records are kept confidential in a safe place. We keep this information to help us provide you with proper care and treatment. We sometimes share your information with other people involved with your care, so that we can all work together for your benefit. However, sometimes the law requires us to pass on certain information, e.g births, deaths, communicable diseases and certain issues under the mental health act 1983.
We also use information for the following purposes:
- To manage, plan and improve NHS services
- To assist with training and teaching of health care professionals
- To assist with health research
If you suffer with an allergy, information on medication and recent prescriptions is available to NHS providers who are able to view your summery care record (SCR).
If you wish to have extra information added to our SCR to help healthcare professionals care for you in an emergency situation (e.g if you suffer from diabetes, asthma or heart problems) then please discuss the matter with your GP.
We will only give information to your relatives, carers or friends with your written consent.
Everyone working for the NHS has a legal duty to keep information about you confidential. We keep your information safe at all times, in accordance with the data protection act 1998. Anyone who receives information from us is also under a legal duty to keep it confidential. Only if we become aware of information to suggest that there is a serious risk to a patient or another person are we obliged to pass it on. We will always try to discuss this with you first, but it can be done without consent if necessary.
Sharing your information with health and social care professionals
This information might be details of your appointments, assessments, medications, or anything that would help a health or social care professional to support you.
It’s a good idea for everyone to make that information available in case they need care or help in an emergency – particular people with certain health conditions or illness.
It will allow professionals to provide better care and work more effectively and efficiently if relevant information about you can be share among agencies providing your support. Sharing your records means health and social care workers have your most up to date information. It also means you don’t have to repeatedly provide the same facts, have unnecessary tests and it would prevent you being given medicine that you’re allergic to.
Duty of care
We will always seek your consent before we check another organisation’s record and files holding your information.
The only exception is our ‘duty of care’, which means that confidentiality can be over-ridden. This would happen if, for instance, there are safeguarding concerns about someone’s welfare or in a medical emergency and consent cannot be obtained. Only authorised health and social care staff involved in your care would be able to access your information, and only specifically to be able to do their job, or to help another professional to give you care.
Register for online services
You may wish to register for online services to have the ability to Book or Cancel an Appointment, Request a Repeat Prescription, Change Personal Details and View your Medical Records without visiting the practice.