SHARING YOUR INFORMATION TO IMPROVE YOUR CARE
The Practice has signed up to a new system which will allow health and social care professionals from outside the GP practice directly involved in your care to view the most up-to-date information about you. This allows the professionals caring for you to more fully understand your needs and means you only have to tell your history once.
You will be asked for your consent whenever a professional outside the GP practice wishes to view your record. If you do not wish your information to be shared in this way please let us know.
For further information please read our Privacy Notice below or see the Frequently Asked Questions.
Barnsley Integrated Care Privacy Notice
Health and social care organisations across Barnsley are improving the way they work together to give you better care and support. By encouraging the sharing of information and resources we can remove the barriers to providing joined up, effective care. Schemes such as I Heart Barnsley and Barnsley Care Navigation and Telehealth Service are a result of this new integrated approach.
How we use your information to support your care
This privacy notice explains why we collect information about you, and how it may be used. It is Hollygreen Practice’s duty as data controller to let you know this and to make you aware of your rights over your information.
The health and social care professionals who provide you with your care maintain records about your health social care needs, including your previous treatment and care. These records allow them to assess your needs, decide what help or treatment is right for you and provide you with the best possible care. Your records may also include the following information:
•Details about you, such as address, date of birth and next of kin
•Any contact that we have had with you, e.g. appointments, clinic visits, emergency appointments, etc.
•Notes reports and assessments about your health and social care needs
•Details about your treatment and care
•Results of investigations, such as laboratory tests, x-rays, etc.
•Relevant information from other health professionals, relatives or those who care for you
Different health and care professionals involved in your care may make their own notes, so you may have care records in different parts of the NHS and social care services.
We use a combination of working practices and technology to make sure that both your electronic and paper records are kept confidential and secure, this includes audit trails of who has accessed your records.
We may use your information to pay GPs; care providers, dentists or hospitals for the care you receive. We may also use it to make sure you receive quality care; to train and teach health and social care professionals; and for local auditing of NHS services and accounts.
We may also use your information to investigate incidents and complaints. If you are unhappy with your care, having a record of what has happened means your concerns can be properly investigated.
Sharing information to improve your care
We will only ever use or pass on information about you if others involved in your care have a genuine need for it. This may include when you need to see another doctor, be referred to a specialist or other health and social care provider.
Health and Social care organisations across Barnsley are committed to working together to provide joined-up integrated care. To make sure this happens they may create joint records on your behalf or share your information to make sure they provide safe, effective care.
You may receive care from other organisations as well as the NHS and Social Services. We may need to share some information about you so we can all work together for your benefit. These partner organisations are listed in the section below called “Who are our partner organisations”.
Ways we may communicate with you
We may need to contact you for a variety of reasons including to:
•Offer you a new appointment or alter an existing one
•Send you a reminder of an existing appointment
•Arrange for transport to be provided
•Ask your opinion of our services
•Tell you about other health and social care services (such as Flu Jabs)
Our standard way to contact you is by letter or telephone. We may also use automated telephone calls, emails, SMS text messaging and where appropriate, social media. If you do not wish to be contacted by any of these other methods please inform one of our Receptionists.
Keeping your information private
We are committed to protecting your privacy and will only use information collected lawfully in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998, Human Rights Act, the Common Law Duty of Confidentiality, and the NHS Codes of Confidentiality and Security.
Every member of staff who works for an NHS organisation or Social Services has a legal obligation to keep information about you confidential. Anyone who receives information from an NHS organisation or Social Services has a legal duty to keep it confidential.
We will not share your information with third parties without your permission unless there are exceptional circumstances, such as when or the health and safety of you or others is at risk, or where or where the law requires information to be passed on.
Accessing Your Own Information
The Data Protection Act allows you to access information that is held about you, and you are able to either view or receive copies of records held in electronic or paper format.
This is known as the “right of subject access”. It applies to all your records held by us. If you want to review your records you should make a request to your care team, or where you are being or have been treated.
You are entitled to receive a copy of your information but should note that a charge will usually be made. In special circumstances your right to see some details in your health records may be limited, to protect you and others mentioned in your records from harm, and to maintain the confidentiality of others.
Blocking Information Sharing
At any time you have the right to object to/withdraw consent from sharing information. The possible consequences will be fully explained to you and could include problems and delays in identifying and providing the most appropriate care.
If you have any questions or concerns about the information we hold on you or the use of your information, please contact the practice and speak to one of our receptionists.
Risk Stratification
Your anonymised information (i.e. with names, addresses etc. removed) from health and social care records is looked at by your local NHS CCG, alongside that of others patients, to identify groups of patients who would benefit from some extra help from their GP or care team. This is known as ‘Risk Stratification’.
The aim is to prevent ill health and possible future hospital stays, rather than wait for you to become sick. Only the GP/ care team is able to see who needs this extra help and all processing of information is carried out under strict rules to make sure this is the case.
Who are our partner organisations?
Where it is in your interest to do so and to support your care, we may share your information with:
•NHS Trusts
•General Practitioners (GPs)
•Local Authorities (including Social Care and Education Services)
•Ambulance Trusts
•Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs)
•‘Data processors’ working on behalf of the NHS and Local Authorities
•Private Sector Providers
* Yorkshire Ambulance Service (YAS) - The practice shares the full patient record to their clinicians for direct care purposes and demographic details to allow direct appointment booking.
When we are required to by law, or under limited circumstances subject to strict agreements on its use, we may share your information with the following organisations.
•Voluntary Sector Providers working on behalf of or with the NHS and Local Authorities
•Independent Contractors such as dentists, opticians, pharmacists
•Governmental Regulators
•Fire and Rescue Services
•Police Services
More Information on Sharing
Your anonymised information may also be used to help us:
•Look after the health of the wider public
•Audit NHS accounts and services
•Investigate complaints, legal claims or untoward incidents
•Make sure our services can meet service user and carer needs in the future
•Prepare statistics on NHS performance
•Review the care we provide to ensure it is of the highest standard
•Teach and train health and social care professionals
•Conduct health research and development
Where we use your information to gather statistics we will make sure that you cannot be identified from this information and that all individuals remain anonymous.
We may give anonymous statistical information to organisations with a legitimate interest, including universities, community safety units and research institutions.
Where there is a request to use your personal confidential data, such as for research purposes this will only be approved after getting your consent.
Barnsley Clinical Commissioning Group
Putting Barnsley People FirstFrequently Asked Questions
In Barnsley, we are making sure whether you are visiting a GP, attending hospital, or being seen in the community or at home by a care professional, that everyone knows the care you need and how you want to be treated.
Your GP Practice has signed up to a new system which will enable health and social care professionals from outside of the GP practice directly involved in your care to view the most up-to-date information about you.
Why do you need to share my information?
So that health and social care professionals directly involved in your care have access to the most up-to-date information about you. This allows the professionals caring for you to more fully understand your needs and means you only have to tell your history once.
Information is already shared by phone and paper records. The new system simply allows this to happen more efficiently. It does this by enabling other health and social care services in Barnsley to view appropriate information from your GP medical record electronically.
Which organisations are involved?
To begin with the system will be used in ‘i-Heart Barnsley,’ a new service providing flexible appointments with GPs and nurses (www.iheartbarnsley.org.uk). We hope to extend the system to other providers of health and care in Barnsley including hospitals, the ambulance service, the GP out of hours service, Barnsley Hospice, and social care.
Can I access my records?
Yes. Under the Data Protection Act 1998 you can request access to all information that organisations hold about you. Please contact the organisations directly to request the information.
Can anybody see my records?
No. Your health and social care records will still be confidential. Only professionals directly involved in your care can see your information through the system and they will only view your information with your permission (consent). We won’t share your information with anyone who doesn’t need it to provide treatment, care and support to you. Your details will be kept safe and won’t be made public, passed on to a third party who is not directly involved in your care, or used for advertising.
How do I know my records are secure?
By law, everyone working in, or for, the NHS and adults’ and children’s social care must respect your privacy and keep your information safe. Your information is stored on secure computer systems connected on a private health & social care network.
Can the service be accessed by health and social care professionals outside of Barnsley?
No. The service is only available to the NHS and social care organisations in Barnsley Borough that have signed up to the system.
Can I opt out of my records being shared?
Yes you can – if you do not wish your information to be shared in this way please contact your GP Practice and they will make sure your record cannot be viewed through this system. Even if you don’t opt out, no one will be able to look at your records unless you say yes. You will be asked to give your consent each time a health or care professional wants to view your record through this system. We believe this system helps us to provide the best quality care and support for you. If all relevant health and social care professionals don’t have access to the most appropriate information it could affect your care.
How will personal data be anonymised and linked for population health analysis?
In Barnsley, a population management programme has been introduced to use linked data from primary, secondary and community care to understand population health more effectively. This only uses pseudonymised data i.e. where information that identified you has been removed and replaced with a pseudonym. This will only ever be reidentified if we discover that you may benefit from a particular health intervention, in which case only the relevant staff within your GP practice will be able to see your personal information to offer this service to you.
To carry out this data linkage, your pseudonymised data will be passed to the North of England Commissioning Support unit, who are part of NHS England, who will link this to other local and national data sources to be able to carry out appropriate analyses. These linked datasets will also be securely shared with Optum and your Clinical Commissioning Group to carry out any further analysis needed to support improvements to the local populations health and to target health and social care resources effectively.
Only a small number of staff based within these UK based organisations will be able to access this data and as this will be pseudonymised in accordance with the ICO Anonymisation Code of Practice, no one will b able to identify you within these organisations.
You have a choice about whether you want your confidential patient information to be used in this way. If you are happy with this use of information you do not need to do anything. If you do choose to opt out your confidential patient information will still be used to support your individual care.
To find out more or to register your choice to opt out, please visit www.nhs.uk/your-nhs-data-matters
THE NEW NATIONAL DATA OPT OUT
The National data opt-out gives patients more control over how identifiable health and care information is used. The system will offer patients and the public the opportunity to make an informed choice about whether they wish their personally identifiable data to be used for their individual care and treatment or also used for research and planning purposes as detailed below:
* Research - findings ways to improve treatments and identify causes of and cures for illnesses
* Planning - to improve and enable efficient and safe provision of health and care services
All health and care organisations in England must comply with the National data out out policy.
If patients are happy about sharing their personal identifiable information for research and planning they do not need to do anything.
Choosing to Opt Out
Patients and the public who decide they do not want their personally identifiable data used for planning and research purposes will be able to set their national data opt out choice online. NHS Digital will provide a non-digital alternative for patients and the public who can't or do not want to use an online system. Individuals can change their mind at any time.
If patients would like to opt out of sharing their personal identifiable data for research and planning they can either:
Telephone 0300 303 5678 Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm (excluding bank holidays)
Or manage their choice online at https://www.nhs.uk/your-nhs-data-matters/
It will not be possible to set national data opt out preferences via your GP practice.
More information on National data opt out can be found at:
https://digital.nhs.uk/services/national-data-opt-out-programme.