In order to protect both our Patients and members of staff, the following Codes of Practice are policy at Handforth Health Centre.

Confidentiality

Confidentiality is central to everyone working in the healthcare environment. All information about Patients is confidential. All Patients can expect that their personal information will not be disclosed without their permission except in the most exceptional of circumstances, or when requested by another Health Care Professional.

Freedom of Information Act

We are responsible for assisting in administering public funds – this information can be made available upon request in writing from the Practice Manager.

Disability Discrimination Act

We can accommodate Patients requiring disabled access to our services.

If you have a complaint or concern about the service you have received from the Doctors or any of the personnel working in the Practice, please let us know. We operate a practice complaints procedure as part of the NHS complaints system which meets national standards.

We hope that most problems will be resolved quickly and easily, often at the time they arise and with the person concerned. If you wish to make a formal complaint, please do so as soon as possible – ideally within a few days. This will enable us to establish what happened more easily. If this is not possible, a complaint must be made within 12 months of the incident or within 12 months of discovering you have a problem. You should address your complaint to the Practice Manager who will deal with your concerns promptly and provide you with a response.

If you are not the patient, but are complaining on their behalf, you must have their permission to do so.

WHAT WILL WE DO

We will acknowledge your complaint within 3 working days and aim to have fully investigated the issue within 10 working days from the date of receipt. If we expect it to take longer we will explain the reason for the delay and a timeline of when you can expect a full explanation.

We will provide a final response setting out the results of any investigation.

We will give you the opportunity to discuss the problem with those concerned, make sure you receive an apology if this is appropriate and take steps to ensure any problem does not rise again.

To access and print our PATIENT COMPLAINT FORM, please click here.

To read through the COMPLAINTS PROCESS in more detail, please click here.

HOW WE USE YOUR MEDICAL RECORD – important information for patients

• This Practice handles medical records in-line with laws on data protection and confidentiality.
• We share medical records with those who are involved in providing you with care and treatment.
• In some circumstances we will also share medical records for medical research, for example to find out more about why people get ill.
• We share information when the law requires us to do so, for example, to prevent infectious diseases from spreading or to check the care provided to you is safe.
• You have the right to be given a copy of your medical record.
• You have the right to object to your medical records being shared with those who provide you with care.
• You have the right to object to your information being used for medical research and to plan health services.
• You have the right to have any mistakes corrected and to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office.  Please see the Practice Privacy Notice on the website or speak to a member of staff for more information about your rights.

For further information about what we do with your data please see below:

GDPR – Patient Privacy Notice
Access to Medical Records Leaflet
Request for Access to Records
GDPR – Patient Privacy Notice leaflet
GDPR – Fair Processing Notice
Patient Information for Young People
GDPR – How we use and protect your personal information
GDPR – Young person privacy notice

GDPR – Supplementary Privacy Notice – COVID19 – April

OPTING OUT 

If you don’t want your identifiable patient data to be shared for purposes except for your own care, you can opt-out by registering a Type 1 Opt-out or a National Data opt-out, or both, These opt-outs are different and further information can be found here.

Type 1 Opt-out:

To register your type 1 opt-out, you can either collect the necessary forms from Reception or you can complete the form here. When returning your completed forms to the Practice, you will need to bring in your ID and also proof of parental responsibility if opting out for a minor.

National Data Opt-out:

Registering a National Data Opt-out can only be done online via www.nhs.uk/your-nhs-data-matters/ we cannot do this at the Practice.

ACCESSIBLE INFORMATION

The Accessible Information Standard aims to ensure that Patients (or their Carers) who have a disability or sensory loss receive information they can access and understand, for example in large print or braille, and professional communication support if they need it.

Individuals most likely to be affected by the Standard include people who are blind or deaf, who have some hearing and/or visual loss and people with a learning disability. However, this list is not exhaustive.

The Standard applies to service providers across the NHS and adult social care system, and it specifically aims to improve the quality and safety of care received by individuals with information and communication needs, and their ability to be involved in autonomous decision-making about their health, care and wellbeing.

If you feel this applies to you or someone in your care please contact Hazel McBride on 01625 529 421.

CHESHIRE CARE RECORD (CCR)

The Cheshire Care Record provides a single summary view of a persons health and social care record, including combined information from the GP Practice, Cheshire hospitals, mental health, community care, cancer care and social care. This is the first time that all of these partners across Cheshire have successfully combined information from multiple sources to provide a summary view, which is updated daily and can be accessed by all staff involved within the patient’s care. For more information please visit Cheshire Care Record [Not Working]. To change your consent preferences please click here to complete the form.

SUMMARY CARE RECORD (SCR)

The Summary Care Record is an electronic record that will give health care professionals essential information about you, to help provide you with treatment in an emergency (England only) or when your GP Practice is closed. The SCR will contain important information about any medication you are taking and allergies you may have. For more information please visit Summary Care Record. To change your consent preferences please click here to complete the form.

NHS DIGITAL

Information about you and the care you receive is shared, in a secure system, by healthcare staff to support your treatment and care.

It is important that we, the NHS, can use this information to plan and improve services for all Patients. We would like to link information from all the different places where you receive care, such as your GP, hospital and community service, to help us provide a full picture. This will allow us to compare the care you received in one area against the care you received in another, so we can see what has worked best.

Information such as your postcode and NHS number, but not your name, will be used to link your records in a secure system, so your identity is protected. Information which does not reveal your identity can then be used by others, such as researchers and those planning health services, to make sure we provide the best care possible for everyone.

You have a choice. If you are happy for your information to be used in this way you do not have to do anything. If you have any concerns or wish to prevent this from happening, please see the ‘opt out’ information above.

For more information, please visit NHS Digital.

Handforth Health Centre takes it very seriously if a member of staff is treated in an abusive or violent way.

The Practice supports the government’s ‘Zero Tolerance‘ campaign for Health Service Staff. This states that GPs and their staff have a right to care for others without fear of being attacked or abused. To successfully provide these services a mutual respect between all the staff and patients has to be in place.

Our Practice staff aim to be polite, helpful, and sensitive to all patients’ individual needs and circumstances. They would respectfully remind patients that very often staff could be confronted with a multitude of varying and sometimes difficult tasks and situations, all at the same time. The staff understands that ill patients do not always act in a reasonable manner and will take this into consideration when trying to deal with a misunderstanding or complaint.

However, aggressive behaviour, be it violent or abusive, will not be tolerated and may result in you being removed from the Practice list and, in extreme cases, the Police being contacted.

In order for the practice to maintain good relations with their patients the practice would like to ask all its patients to read and take note of the occasional types of behaviour that would be found unacceptable:

• Using bad language or swearing at practice staff
• Any physical violence towards any member of the Primary Health Care Team or other patients, such as pushing or shoving
• Verbal abuse towards the staff in any form including verbally insulting the staff
• Racial abuse and sexual harassment will not be tolerated within this practice
• Persistent or unrealistic demands that cause stress to staff will not be accepted. Requests will be met wherever possible and explanations given when they cannot
• Causing damage/stealing from the Practice’s premises, staff or patients
• Obtaining drugs and/or medical services fraudulently
• We ask you to treat your GPs and their staff courteously at all times.

The practice acknowledges that there may be instances where violence and / or aggression forms part of a patient’s illness. In these circumstances, the issue will be discussed with the patient and form part of their care planning.

This information will be recorded in the patient’s medical record and flagged to ensure that members of staff are aware. In addition, where deemed necessary, appropriate support will be put in place, e.g. staff members do not see the patient alone.

Removal from the Practice List

The removal of patients from our list is an exceptional and rare event and is a last resort in an impaired patient-practice relationship. We value and respect good patient-doctor relationships based on mutual respect and trust. When trust has irretrievably broken down, the practice will consider all factors before removing a patient from their list, and communicate to them that it is in the patient’s best interest that they should find a new practice. An exception to this is in the case of immediate removal on the grounds of violence e.g. when the Police are involved.

Removing other members of the household

Because of the possible need to visit patients at home, it may be necessary to terminate responsibility for other members of the family or the entire household to ensure the safety of practice staff.

The prospect of visiting patients that is the residence of a relative who is no longer a patient of the practice, or the risk of being regularly confronted by the removed patient, may make it difficult for the practice to continue to look after the whole family. This is more likely where the removed patient has been violent or displayed threatening behaviour, and keeping the other family members could put doctors or their staff at risk.

• www.chawhealth.co.uk