Sharing Your Information
The Prince of Wales Surgery
Sharing your medical information
Background
For a number of years, work has been ongoing to improve the way that medical records are made
available to treating clinicians. As a result of this work we are now able to share clinical information
between certain health professionals.
This means that with your consent, we are able share your medical records with those in the NHS who
are involved in your care. NHS staff can only access shared information if they are involved in your care
and being an electronic service an audit log is maintained showing when and who has accessed medical
records.
This helps clinicians to make decisions based upon a wider knowledge of you and also helps to reduce the
number of times that you or your family members are asked the same question. In short it assists
clinicians to provide more ‘joined up care’.
We already share records of children for child protection reasons and patients who are under the care of
the District Nursing Team.
If I agreed, who could see my records?
Clinicians treating you, who have access to the same system can view and in some cases update your
medical records. Locally this includes the Walk-In-Centre, many departments at local hospitals (including
A&E) and community services, such as the District Nursing Team. It is anticipated that over time more
health services will be able use this system to access records if appropriate.
Clinicians outside of the surgery who wish to access your medical records will ask for your permission to
do so and will need to have been issued with a NHS Smartcard. This is a ’chip and pin’ card -similar to a
bank card.
Can I choose who sees my record?
Yes you can—there are two levels of consent. The first is to agree to sharing your medical records OUT of
the practice. This is your agreement that records maintained by your GP can be seen, subject to your
authority at the time, by clinicians working outside of the surgery. The second is agreeing to share your
records IN. This means that your GP can see the records made by other health professionals who have
access to EDSM.
However, as the treating clinician needs to ask your permission to see the records at the beginning of
each period of care you are in control of who can see your medical information.
What can I do if I don’t want to allow access to my records?
As we feel this access will enhance patient care we will automatically ‘opt you in’ to both parts of the
scheme.
If you prefer not to be then please mention it to a member of the reception team.
You are free to change your mind at any time.
I can see the benefits of the other people treating me seeing my notes, but what if there is a matter
that I want to stay just between me and my doctor?
You can ask for any consultation to be marked as private, this means that viewing is restricted to the
surgery, but allows the rest of the record to be viewed by whoever else is treating you. It is your
responsibility to ask for a consultation to be marked as private.
How is this different from previous arrangements?
In the past other NHS Services to see your current medications and the drugs that you are allergic or
sensitive to via a Summary Care Record.
This new system allows your full record to be seen. (is this correct?)
Can I change my mind?
Yes, you can always change your mind and amend who you consent to see your records. For instance
you can decline to share your records out from the surgery, but if you built up a relationship with the
physiotherapist who was treating you and they asked you if they could look at an x-ray report, you could
give your consent at that point for them to view your records.
You will be referred back to us to change your preference, so the physiotherapist treating you should—
with your permission—be able to see your records by the time of your next appointment.
If I decline—what happens in an emergency?
In the event of a medical emergency, for instance if you were taken unconscious to A+E, and the clinician
treating you feels it is important to be able to see your medical records he is able to override any
consents set.
However, the doctor has to give a written reason for doing so. Where this happens an audit is undertaken
by the local Caldicott Guardian (the person with overall responsibility for Data Protection compliance).
Can anyone else see my medical records?
Not unless you give your written consent for this to happen.
On a daily basis, we get requests from Insurance Companies to either have copies of medical records or
excerpts from patients’ medical records. This requires your signed consent as it has not been requested
to treat/care for you.
Occasionally we are asked for information from the medical records for legal reasons, again this has to be
done with your written consent, or in very exceptional circumstances, by court order.
Any questions?
If you have any questions, please speak to reception.
If necessary the receptionist will arrange for another member of the team to give you a call.
Privacy Statement
The Prince of Wales Surgery aims to ensure the highest standard of medical care for our patients. To
do this we keep records about you, your health and the care we have provided or plan to provide to
you.
This privacy notice does not provide exhaustive details of all aspects of the collection and use of
personal information by Prince of Wales Surgery. However, we are happy to provide any additional
information or explanation needed. If you wish to request further information please contact the
Practice Manager, Sally Holland.
How We Use Your Information
In order to provide for your care, we need to collect and keep information about you and your
health on our records. Your records are used to:

Provide a basis for all health decisions made by you and care professionals;

Allow you to work with those providing care;

Make sure your care is safe and effective;

Work effectively with others providing you with care.
We also may use, or share, your information for the following purposes:

Looking after the health of the general public;

Making sure that our services can meet patient needs in the future;

Auditing accounts;

Preparing statistics on NHS performance and activity (where steps will be taken to
ensure you cannot be identified);

Investigating concerns, complaints or legal claims;

Helping staff to review the care they provide to make sure it is of the highest standards;

Training and educating staff (you can choose whether or not to be involved personally);

Research approved by the Local Research Ethics Committee. (If anything to do with the
research would involve you personally, you will be contacted to provide consent);
Disclosure of Information to Other Health and Social Professionals
We may need to share some of your information with other health and social care professionals in
order to provide you with the treatment and services you need.
Computer System
This practice operates a Clinical Computer System called SystmOne. It lets NHS Staff record
information securely. This information can then be shared with other clinicians so that everyone
caring for you is fully informed about your medical history, including allergies and medication.
You will be asked to consent before your information is shared.
We consider patient consent as being the key factor in dealing with their health information.
Our partner organisations
We may need to share your information with the following organisations:

other NHS Trusts and GP Practices;

Health & Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC);

Specialist Trusts;

Independent Contractors such as dentists, opticians, pharmacists;

Private Sector Providers;

Voluntary Sector Providers;

Ambulance Trusts;

Clinical Commissioning Groups.
We may also share your information, with your consent, and subject to strict sharing
protocols about how it will be used, with:

Social Care Services

Local Authorities

Education Services

Police
How we keep your information confidential and secure
We are committed to protecting your privacy and will only use information collected
lawfully in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998, Article 8 of the Human Rights Act,
the Common Law Duty of Confidentiality, and the NHS Codes of Confidentiality and Security.
Everyone working in, or for, the NHS must use personal information in a secure and
confidential way.
We will only ever use or pass on your information if there is a genuine need to do so. We
will not disclose information about you to third parties without your permission unless there
are exceptional circumstances, such as when the law requires.
At all times your information is kept secure. We use encryption for sending electronic
information and if we are sending your information in the post we use the special delivery
service.
To protect your confidentiality, we will not normally disclose any medical information about
you over the telephone, or by fax, unless we are sure that we are talking to you. This means that
we will not disclose information to your family, friends, and colleagues about any medical
matters at all, unless we know that we have your consent to do so.
Anyone who receives information from us is also under a legal duty to keep it confidential
and secure
All persons in the practice sign a confidentiality agreement that explicitly makes clear their duties in
relation to personal health information and the consequences of breaching that duty.
Please be aware that your information will be accessed by non-clinical practice staff in order to
perform tasks enabling the functioning of the practice. These are, but not limited to:

Typing referral letters to hospital consultants or allied health professionals;

Opening letters from hospitals and consultants;

Scanning clinical letters, radiology reports and any other documents not available in
electronic format;

Photocopying or printing documents for referral to consultants;

Handling, printing, photocopying and postage of medico legal and life assurance
reports and of associated documents.
Right of Access to your Health Information
The Data Protection Act 1998 allows you to find out what information about you is held on
computer and in manual records. This is known as “right of subject access” and applies to
personal information held about you. If you want to see the information about you that the
practice holds:

you will need to make a written request. Please telephone the surgery to
obtain the necessary form.

there may be a charge to view or have a printed copy of the information held
about you;

we are required to respond to you within 40 days;

you will need to give adequate information (for example full name, address,
date of birth NHS number etc);

If you are registered for Systmonline you may request to have access to your
medical records via this portal
you will be required to provide ID before any information is released to you.
Who else may ask to access your information

The law courts can insist that we disclose medical records to them;

Solicitors often ask for medical reports. These will always be accompanied by your
signed consent for us to disclose information. We will not normally release details about
other people that are contained in your records (e.g. wife, children, parents etc.) unless
we also have their consent;

Limited information is shared with health authorities to help them organise national
programmes for Public Health such as childhood immunisations;

Social Services. The Benefits Agency and others may require medical reports on you
from time to time. These will often be accompanied by your signed consent to disclose
information. Failure to co-operate with these agencies can lead to loss of benefit or
other support. However, if we have not received your signed consent we will not
normally disclose information about you;

Life assurance companies frequently ask for medical reports on prospective clients.
These are always accompanied by your signed consent form. We must disclose all
relevant medical conditions unless you ask us not to do so. In that case, we would have
to inform the insurance company that you have instructed us not to make a full
disclosure to them.
You have the right, should you request it, to see reports to insurance companies or employers
before they are sent.
Sharing your information without consent
We will normally ask you for your consent, but there are times when we may be required by
law to share your information without your consent, for example:

where there is a serious risk of harm or abuse to you or other people;

where a serious crime, such as assault, is being investigated or where it could be
prevented;

notification of new births;

where we encounter infectious diseases that may endanger the safety of others,
such as meningitis or measles (but not HIV/AIDS);

where a formal court order has been issued;

where there is a legal requirement, for example if you had committed a Road Traffic
Offence.
Website
The Prince of Wales Surgery is committed to ensuring that your privacy is protected. Should
we ask you to provide certain information by which you can be identified when using this
website, you can be assured that it will only be used in accordance with this privacy
statement. Information you supply using any electronic form(s) on this website will only be
used for the purpose(s) stated on the form;
You may choose to restrict the collection or use of your personal information in the
following ways:

whenever you are asked to fill in a form on the website, look for the box that you can
click to indicate that you do not want the information to be used by anybody for
direct marketing purposes;

if you have previously agreed to us using your personal information for direct
marketing purposes, you may change your mind at any time by contacting us on
01305 250989 and ask to speak to the Patient Services Manager or the Practice
Manager.
Changes to this privacy notice
We keep our privacy notice under regular review. This privacy notice will be reviewed again
in 6 months.
Concerns
If you have any concerns about how we use or share your information, or you do not wish
us to share your information, then please contact the Practice Manager who will be able to
assist you.
If you need to contact us regarding sharing of your medical information please telephone
01305 250989 and ask to speak to either the Practice Manager or the Patient Services
Manager.
Last reviewed 29.12.15