Treating Children and Disclosing Information to Parents

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR PARENTS OR THOSE WITH PARENTAL RESPONSIBILITY

If a child is under 12 years old or NOT capable of consenting (to being seen by a doctor, nurse or receiving treatment) themselves, it is vital that we have the CONSENT of a person with PARENTAL RESPONSIBILITY (usually a signed note or letter).

Examples of this would be when a child is brought to the surgery by a grandparent, nanny or sibling).

In an emergency, where treatment is vital and waiting to obtain parental consent would place the child at risk, treatment can proceed without consent.

Gillick Competence

This is a term used in medical law to decide whether a child (16 years or younger) is able to consent to his or her own medical treatment, without the need for parental permission or knowledge.

What does this mean in practice?

Children under 16 years old can consent to medical treatment if they understand what is being proposed. It is up to the doctor to decide whether the child has the maturity and the intelligence to fully understand the nature of the treatment, the options, risks and benefits.

A child who has such understanding is considered Gillick competent. The parents cannot overrule the child’s consent when the child is judged to be Gillick competent.

Eg. A 15 year old Gillick competent boy can consent to receiving tetanus immunization even if his parents do not agree.

Aged 16 and 17 years. A child having reached the age of 16 years can consent to investigation or treatment and cannot be overruled by anyone with parental responsibility (but can be overridden by the Court).
Once a person reaches their 18^th birthday they are assumed to be a competent adult.
12 years old is deemed to be about the age when a child can be assessed for competency (Gillick competency).
If a child is deemed to be competent, then they have the same rights to confidentiality as an adult. In practice this means information cannot be given to someone with parental responsibility eg whether they have attended the surgery, what the consultation was about, unless consent has been given by the child.
A doctor or nurse will always ask the child if someone with parental responsibility knows they have attended and if they have consent to speak to a parent.
On many occasions the reason a child has attended alone is often for straightforward reasons, eg parent looking after sibling, a simple problem that a parent thought child could attend by themselves etc. However, even though a child, if the child is deemed Gillick competent, then the child has the same rights as an adult to confidentiality. If the child therefore does not wish a parent to know of their attendance or reason for the attendance, then the health professional is bound by the law not to disclose this information.

Dispute or query content in your medical record

What is in my medical record?

Your medical record contains records from many different sources. Your prescriptions, letters we have received from hospital and those we have sent, results of blood tests and other clinical tests, vaccinations and more. It also includes the entries from professionals like GPs and Nurses.

What do you write about me?

Your medical record has been written by professionals, for use by professionals. In the context of general practice, Clinicians will make notes throughout a consultation, this can vary widely in terms of the length of an appointment, the setting (face to face vs a telephone consult) and the subject matter. A clinician may use abbreviations and paraphrase what is said rather than write long sentences verbatim and may not document something that is not said that isn’t relevant to the consultation matter. There can also be times where a clinician may document observations about a patient if relevant (i.e. appearance or behaviours) which have a bearing on the clinical matter.

A clinician may document an opinion, particularly in situations where the diagnosis is uncertain or as a diagnosis evolves and changes over time. It is important to note that although there may be different clinicians that you meet or speak to when accessing the GP surgery, we all use the same record, and what we write is often helpful for the next professional who is involved.

Members of the practice team, may also add entries to your record to record when we have given you information or advice such as contacting you to book an appointment for a health review or advising you to contact another healthcare service when we are unable to help with your query.

What if something looks wrong?

Under Article 16 of GDPR, you have the right to rectification, this means that you can request to be rectified personal data that is incorrect or misleading as to any matter of fact. Health records are special category data, considered more sensitive than other types of data. In most cases, we are unable to remove clinical entries that were incorrect, but we can add an entry to the record to make it clear that the information has subsequently been noted to be incorrect.

Toe dispute or query and entry in your medical record you can:

Use the form on our website – “Dispute or Query Online Medical Entry”

Submit a request to us in writing.

· We will not routinely discuss these requests over the phone.

· We will not rectify data such as opinions where the clinician feels this an appropriate opinion to record and was accurate at that time.

· We may decline requests which do not affect the clinical interpretation of the entry, for example “stopped smoking 10 years ago” when it was 11.

· We can also refuse requests that are manifestly unfounded or excessive.

After I make a dispute or query, what happens then?

On receipt of the online form or letter, we will write back to acknowledge receipt of said letter. We will then pass this to the clinician(s) involves who will look at this. This should take no longer than 60 days though for particularly large enquiries, if we require more time, we will write to you. We may also inform you if likely to take longer if submitted around times of expected disruption to the practice e.g. Christmas or Summer Holidays when we have high numbers of staff off on planned annual leave.

We will look at your enquiry and the record. We will then write back to you with an outcome. If you still feel there is factual inaccuracy, you may write to us further to explain your reasoning and we will consider this.

Can I speak with a GP about this at a consultation?

No.

General Practice is under unprecedented strain, and conversations about medical records, particularly if not speaking with the original clinician involved, can be time consuming and divert experienced GPs away from clinical care to deal with administrative matters. Therefore, GP appointments will not be booked routinely to deal with this, and a GP is well within their right to decline to speak with patients regarding this, should the matter be raised while in clinical consultation. It would be inappropriate to ask non-GP members of staff (i.e., asking a receptionist to change records), they will advise you they are unable to discuss this.

If a GP feels a discussion if required, they will make those arrangements directly with you or advising our receptionists.

Access to Medical Record – Third Party (Proxy)

If you would like to nominate a family member, carer or someone else to have access to liaise with the surgery on your behalf or to have access to your medical record, you will need to complete the “Application for Third-Party Access to Healthcare Information” form.

For further information, please review our information leaflet.

To download the form, click here.

The form will need to be signed and returned to the reception desk.

If you want to send the form back electronically, please send it to houccg.thornburyroad@nhs.net for the attention of Deepa Kapila. Someone from the practice will call you on the telephone to confirm it was you who completed and returned the form.

Care Quality Commission (CQC)

The practice is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Your Rights and Responsibilities

Patient’s Rights

We are committed to giving you the best possible service. This will be achieved by working together. Help us to help you. You have a right to, and the practice will try to ensure that:

You will be treated with courtesy and respect
You will be treated as a partner in the care and attention that you receive
All aspects of your visit will be dealt with in privacy and confidence
You will be seen by a doctor of your choice subject to availability
In an emergency, out of normal opening hours, if you telephone the practice you will be given the number to receive assistance, which will require no more than one further call
You can bring someone with you, however you may be asked to be seen on your own during the consultation
Repeat prescriptions will normally be available for collection within two working days of your request
Information about our services on offer will be made available to you by way of posters, notice boards and newsletters
You have the right to see your medical records or have a copy subject to certain laws.

Patient’s Responsibilities

With these rights come responsibilities and for patients we would respectfully request that you:

Treat practice staff and doctors with the same consideration and courtesy that you would like yourself. Remember that they are trying to help you
Please ensure that you order your repeat medication in plenty of time allowing 48 working hours.
Please ensure that you have a basic first aid kit at home and initiate minor illness and self-care for you and your family.
Please attend any specialist appointments that have been arranged for you or cancel them if your condition has resolved or you no longer wish to attend
Please follow up any test or investigations done for you with the person who has requested the investigation
Attend appointments on time and check in with Reception
Patients who are more than 20 minutes late for their appointment may not be seen.
If you are unable to make your appointment or no longer need it, please give the practice adequate notice that you wish to cancel. Appointments are heavily in demand and missed appointments waste time and delay more urgent patients receiving the treatment they need
An appointment is for one person only. Where another family member needs to be seen or discussed, another appointment should be made
Patients should make every effort to present at the surgery to ensure the best use of nursing and medical time. Home visits should be medically justifiable and not requested for social convenience
Please inform us when you move home, change your name or telephone number, so that we can keep our records correct and up to date
Read the practice leaflets and other information that we give you. They are there to help you use our services. If you do not understand their content please tell us
Let us have your views. Your ideas and suggestions whether complimentary or critical are important in helping us to provide a first class, safe, friendly service in pleasant surroundings.

NHS Constitution

The NHS Constitution establishes the principles and values of the NHS in England. For more information see these websites:

Suggestions, Comments and Complaints

We welcome all comments on the services provided by the Practice.

You may submit any comments via our online Patient Feedback form below.

Please note: This form should only be used to provide your feedback on the website, your experiences as a patient or the services we provide. Please do not use it to ask questions or request prescriptions as we are unable to respond or deal with these requests via the form – please use our Online Services instead.

Alternatively you may write to us or contact us by phone or fax. Our details can be found on our Feedback, Compliments and Complaint page.

Statement of Intent

New contractual requirements came into force from 1 April 2014 requiring that GP Practices should make available a statement of intent in relation to the following IT developments :

Summary Care Record (SCR)
GP to GP Record Transfers
Patient Online Access to Their GP Record
Data for commissioning and other secondary care purposes

The same contractual obligations require that we have a statement of intent regarding these developments in place and publicised by 30 September 2014.
Please find below details of the practices stance with regards to these points.

Summary Care Record (SCR)

NHS England require practices to enable successful automated uploads of any changes to patient’s summary information, at least on a daily basis, to the summary care record (SCR) or have published plans in place to achieve this by 31st of March 2015.
Having your Summary Care Record (SCR) available will help anyone treating you without your full medical record. They will have access to information about any medication you may be taking and any drugs that you have a recorded allergy or sensitivity to.
Of course if you do not want your medical records to be available in this way then you will need to let us know so that we can update your record. You can do this via the opt out form.
The practice confirms that your SCR is automatically updated on at least a daily basis to ensure that your information is as up to date as it can possibly be.

GP to GP Record Transfers

NHS England require practices to utilise the GP2GP facility for the transfer of patient records between practices, when a patient registers or de-registers (not for temporary registration).
It is very important that you are registered with a doctor at all times. If you leave your GP and register with a new GP, your medical records will be removed from your previous doctor and forwarded on to your new GP via NHS England. It can take your paper records up to two weeks to reach your new surgery.
With GP to GP record transfers your electronic record is transferred to your new practice much sooner.
The practice confirms that GP to GP transfers are already active and we send and receive patient records via this system.

Patient Online Access to Their GP Record

NHS England require practices to promote and offer the facility to enable patients online access to appointments, prescriptions, allergies and adverse reactions or have published plans in place to achieve this by 31st of March 2015.
We currently offer the facility for booking and cancelling appointments and also for ordering your repeat prescriptions and viewing a summary of your medical records on-line. If you do not already have a user name and password for this system – please register your interest with our reception staff.

Data for commissioning and other secondary care purposes

It is already a requirement of the Health and Social Care Act that practices must meet the reasonable data requirements of commissioners and other health and social care organisations through appropriate and safe data sharing for secondary uses, as specified in the technical specification for care data.
At our practice we have specific arrangements in place to allow patients to “opt out” of care.data which allows for the removal of data from the practice. Please see the page about care data on our website

The Practice confirm these arrangements are in place and that we undertake annual training and audits to ensure that all our data is handled correctly and safely via the Information Governance Toolkit.

Recruitment Privacy Notice

Candidates applying for work privacy notice

Introduction

At Thornbury Road Centre for Health, we have a legal duty to explain how we use any personal information we collect about you at the organisation. We collect records during the recruitment stage and then data is continued to be collected for any successful candidate. This is in both electronic and paper format.

This privacy notice applies to personal information processed by or on behalf of Thornbury Road Centre for Health. We are required to provide you with this privacy notice by law. It provides information on how we use the personal and healthcare information we collect, store and hold about you. If you have any questions about this privacy notice or are unclear about how we process or use your personal information or have any other issue regarding your personal and healthcare information, then please contact our practice manager at houccg.thronburyroad@nhs.net

This notice explains:

Who we are, how we use your information and our Data Protection Officer (DPO)
What kind of personal information about you we process
What the legal grounds are for our processing of your personal information (including when we share it with others)
What you should do if your personal information changes
How long your personal information is retained by us
What your rights are under data protection laws

The UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) became law on 24th May 2016. This is a single EU-wide regulation on the protection of confidential and sensitive information. It entered into force in the UK on the 25th May 2018, repealing the Data Protection Act (1998).

For the purpose of applicable data protection legislation (including but not limited to the General Data Protection Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2016/679) (the “GDPR”), and the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA2018) the organisation responsible for your personal data is Thornbury Road Centre for Health.

This notice describes how we collect, use and process your personal data and how, in doing so, we comply with our legal obligations to you. Your privacy is important to us and we are committed to protecting and safeguarding your data privacy rights. This privacy policy applies to the personal data collected from candidates applying for roles within the organisation.

How we use your information and the law

Thornbury Road Centre for Health will be what is known as the ‘controller’ of the personal data you provide to us. Upon applying for work with the organisation you will be asked to supply the following personal information:

Name
Address
Telephone numbers
Email address
Date of birth
Previous employment data
Recruitment information such as your application form and CV, references, qualifications and membership of any professional bodies and details of your employment history, skills and experience
Information about your current level of remuneration, including benefit entitlements
Whether or not you have a disability for which the organisation needs to make reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process
Information in relation to your right to work in the UK [as per the Rights to Work in the UK – guide to checking]
Information from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) in order to administer relevant checks and procedures
Vaccination and immunisation status/information

The information that we ask you to provide to the organisation is required for the following reasons:

In order for us to review your application
In order for us to contact you with interview details
To comply with appropriate employment law
To ensure that we can provide any reasonable adjustments as necessary

The organisation may collect this information in a variety of ways, for example from application forms, CVs or resumes, obtained from your passport or other identity documents such as your driving licence and from forms completed by you or through interviews, meetings or other assessments including on-line tests.

This personal data might be provided to us by you, or someone else (such as a former employer’s reference, information from background check providers including criminal records checks permitted by law) or it could be created by us.

The organisation will seek information from third parties only once a job offer has been made to you and we will inform you that we are doing so.

Your personal data will be stored in a range of different places including in your application record, in the organisation’s HR management systems and in other IT systems (including the organisation’s email system).

Throughout the application process we will collect data and add this to your personnel file i.e., interview question answers, interview scores etc.

Special categories of personal data

Some special categories of personal data, such as information about health or medical conditions, is processed to carry out employment law obligations (such as those in relation to job applicants with disabilities).

For some roles, the organisation is obliged to seek information about criminal convictions and offences. Where we seek this information, we do so because it is necessary for us to carry out our obligations and exercise specific rights in relation to employment.

Where the organisation processes other special categories of personal data such as information about ethnic origin, sexual orientation or religion or belief, this is done for the purposes of equal opportunities monitoring. Data that the organisation uses for these purposes is anonymised or is collected with the express consent of job applicants which can be withdrawn at any time. Job applicants are entirely free to decide whether or not to provide such data and there are no consequences of failing to do so.

If your application is unsuccessful, the organisation may keep your personal data on file in case there are future job opportunities for which you may be considered. We will seek your consent to do this and you are free to withdraw your consent at any time.

How do we lawfully use your data?

We need to know your personal, sensitive and confidential data in order to employ you. Under the General Data Protection Regulation we will be lawfully using your information in accordance with:

Article 6, (b) Necessary for performance of/entering into contract with you
Article 9(2) (b) Necessary for controller to fulfil employment rights or obligations in employment

This notice applies to the personal data of our candidates applying for work at Thornbury Road Centre for Health.

How do we maintain the confidentiality of your record?

We are committed to protecting your privacy and will only use information collected lawfully in accordance with:

We will only ever use or pass on information about you to others who have a genuine need for it. We will not disclose your information to any third party without your permission unless there are exceptional circumstances (i.e., life or death situations) or where the law requires information to be passed on.

Our policy is to respect the privacy of our candidates and to maintain compliance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and all UK specific Data Protection Requirements. Our policy is to ensure all personal data will be protected.

All employees and sub-contractors engaged by Thornbury Road Centre for Health are asked to sign a confidentiality agreement. The organisation will, if required, sign a separate confidentiality agreement if the client deems it necessary. If a sub-contractor acts as a data processor for Thornbury Road Centre for Health an appropriate contract (art 24-28) will be established for the processing of your information.

Where do we store your information electronically?

All the personal data we process is processed by our organisation in the UK. However, for the purposes of IT hosting and maintenance this information may be located on servers within the European Union.

No third parties have access to your personal data unless the law allows them to do so and appropriate safeguards have been put in place. We have a data protection regime in place to oversee the effective and secure processing of your personal and or special category (sensitive, confidential) data.

Who are our partner organisations?

We may also have to share your information, subject to strict agreements on how it will be used, with the following organisations:

Primary Care Networks
Integrated Care Systems
NHS Commissioning Support Units
Clinical Commissioning Groups
NHS England (NHSE) and NHS Digital (NHSD)
Local authorities
CQC
Private sector providers providing employment services
Other ‘data processors’ which you will be informed of

Sharing your personal data

Your information may be shared internally for the purpose of the recruitment exercise including with members of the HR and recruitment team, interviewers in the recruitment process, managers in the business area with the vacancy and IT staff if access to the data is necessary for performance of their roles.

The organisation will not share your personal data with third parties except those engaged for the purposes of the recruitment process or unless your application for employment is successful and we make you an offer of employment. We will then share your data with former employers to obtain references for you, employment background check providers to obtain necessary background checks and the Disclosure and Barring Service to obtain necessary criminal record checks.

The organisation will not transfer your data to countries outside the European Economic Area.

You will be informed who your data will be shared with and in some cases asked for consent for this to happen when this is required.

We may also use external companies to process personal information such as for archiving purposes. These companies are bound by contractual agreements to ensure information is kept confidential and secure. All employees and sub-contractors engaged by Thornbury Road Centre for Health are asked to sign a confidentiality agreement. If a sub-contractor acts as a data processor for the organisation, an appropriate contract (art 24-28) will be established for the processing of your information.

Who is the data controller?

Thornbury Road Centre for Health is registered as a data controller under the Data Protection Act 2018. Our registration can be viewed online in the public register at http://www.ico.gov.uk. This means we are responsible for handling your personal and healthcare information and collecting and storing it appropriately.

We may also process your information for a particular purpose and therefore we may also be data processors. The purposes for which we use your information are set out in this privacy notice.

How long do we keep your personal information?

We are required under UK law to keep your information and data for the full retention periods as specified by the NHS Records Management Code of Practice for health and social care and national archives requirements.

If your application is unsuccessful, the organisation will hold your personal data for a period of six months following the recruitment process. If you agree to allow the organisation to keep your personal data on file, for consideration for future job opportunities, we will hold your data for a further six months. At the end of that period (or once you withdraw consent), your data will be deleted or destroyed.

If your application for employment is successful, personal data gathered during the recruitment process will be transferred to your personnel file and retained during your employment.

More information on records retention can be found online at: NHSX – Records Management Code of Practice 2020.

Storing DBS certificates

The correct storage of DBS certificate information is important. The code of practice requires that the information revealed is considered only for the purpose for which it was obtained and should be destroyed after six months.

How can you access, amend or move the personal data that you have given to us?

Even if we already hold your personal data, you still have various rights in relation to it. For further information about this, please contact the practice manager. We will seek to deal with your request without undue delay and in any event in accordance with the requirements of any applicable laws. Please note that we may keep a record of your communications to help us resolve any issues which you raise.

Right to object: If we are using your data because we deem it necessary for our legitimate interests to do so, and you do not agree, you have the right to object. We will respond to your request within 30 days (although we may be allowed to extend this period in certain cases). Generally, we will only disagree with you if certain limited conditions apply.
Right to withdraw consent: Where we have obtained your consent to process your personal data for certain activities (for example for a research project), or consent to market to you, you may withdraw your consent at any time.
Right to erasure: In certain situations (for example, where we have processed your data unlawfully), you have the right to request us to “erase” your personal data. We will respond to your request within 30 days (although we may be allowed to extend this period in certain cases) and will only disagree with you if certain limited conditions apply. If we do agree to your request, we will delete your data but will generally assume that you would prefer us to keep a note of your name on our register of individuals who would prefer not to be contacted. That way, we will minimise the chances of you being contacted in the future where your data is collected in unconnected circumstances. If you would prefer us not to do this, you are free to say so.
Right of data portability: If you wish, you have the right to transfer your data from us to another data controller.

Your rights as a candidate applying for work

Data Subject Access Requests (DSAR): You have a right under the data protection legislation to request access to view or to obtain copies of what information this organisation holds about you and to have it amended should it be inaccurate. To request this, you need to do the following:

Your request should be made to the practice manager: Maria Power thornburyroad@nhs.net
There is no charge to have a copy of the information held about you. However we may, in some limited and exceptional circumstances, have to make an administrative charge for any extra copies if the information requested is excessive, complex or repetitive
We are required to provide you with information within one month. We would ask therefore that any requests you make are in writing and it is made clear to us what and how much information you require
You will need to give adequate information (for example full name, address, date of birth and details of your request) so that your identity can be verified and your records located

What should you do if your personal information changes?

You should tell us so that we can update our records. Please contact the practice manager as soon as any of your details change, this is especially important for changes of address or contact details (such as your mobile phone number).

What to do if you have any questions

Should you have any questions about this privacy policy or the information we hold about you, you can:

Contact the organisation via email at thornburyroad@nhs.net
Write to the data protection officer at NW London CCGs primary care Data Protection Officer service and they can be contacted by e-mail: infogovernance@nhs.net
Ask to speak to the practice manager Maria Power

The data protection officer (DPO) for Thornbury Road Centre for Health is NW London CCGs primary care Data Protection Officer service

Objections or complaints

In the unlikely event that you are unhappy with any element of our data-processing methods, do please contact the practice manager Maria Power at Thornbury Road Centre for Health, Thornbury Road, Isleworth, TW& 4HQ in the first instance. If you feel that we have not addressed your concern appropriately, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the ICO. For further details, visit ico.gov.uk and select “Raising a concern” or telephone: 0303 123 1113

The Information Commissioner’s Office is the regulator for the General Data Processing Regulations and offers independent advice and guidance on the law and personal data including your rights and how to access your personal information.

Changes to our privacy policy

We regularly review our employee privacy policy and any updates will be published to reflect the changes. This policy is to be reviewed 15/12/2022.

Record Sharing

Wherever you visit an NHS service in England a record is created for you. This means medical information about you can be held in various places, including your GP practice, any hospital where you’ve had treatment, your dentist practice, and so on.

At times, this can delay information sharing which can affect decision making and slow down treatment.

To help improve the sharing of important information about you there are several different record sharing initiatives. You can find information about the different types of record sharing & how to OPT-OUT using the links below.

National Data Opt-Out
Summary Care Record (Automatic opt-in)
SystmOne Record Sharing (Automatic opt-in)
WSIC Dashboard (Automatic opt-in)

Privacy Policy

We are committed to protecting your privacy. You can access our website without giving us any information about yourself. But sometimes we do need information to provide services that you request, and this statement of privacy explains data collection and use in those situations.

In general, you can visit our web site without telling us who you are and without revealing any information about yourself. However there may be occasions when you choose to give us personal information, for example, when you choose to contact us or request information from us. We will ask you when we need information that personally identifies you or allows us to contact you.

We collect the personal data that you may volunteer while using our services. We do not collect information about our visitors from other sources, such as public records or bodies, or private organisations. We do not collect or use personal data for any purpose other than that indicated below:

To send you confirmation of requests that you have made to us
To send you information when you request it.

Our website may contain links to other websites of interest. However, once you have used these links to leave our site, you should be aware that we do not have any control over the other website. Therefore, we cannot be responsible for the protection and privacy of any information which you provide whilst visiting these sites.

We intend to protect the quality and integrity of your personally identifiable information and we have implemented appropriate technical and organisational measures to do so. We ensure that your personal data will not be disclosed to State institutions and authorities except if required by law or other regulation.