Summary Care Record (SCR)
The Avenue Medical Centre offers its patients the choice of having a Summary Care Record.
The new NHS Summary Care Record has been introduced to improve the safety and quality of patient care.
Because the Summary Care Record is an electronic record it will give healthcare staff faster, easier access to essential information about you, to help provide you with safe treatment when you need care in an emergency or when your GP practice is closed.
The Summary Care Record contains information about:
· any medicines you are taking,
· any allergies you suffer from,
· any bad reactions to medicines that you have had.
Clinicians will only be allowed to access your record if they are authorised to do so and, even then, only if you give your express permission. You will be asked if healthcare staff can look at your Summary Care Record every time they need to, unless it is an emergency, for instance if you are unconscious. You can refuse if you think access is unnecessary.
Over time, health professionals treating you may add details about any health problems and summaries of your care. Every time further information is added to your record, you will be asked if you agree.
For further information please ask a member of staff at the practice or visit www.nhscarerecords.nhs.uk/
For existing patients it is different in that it is assumed that you want your record uploaded to the Central NHS Computer System unless you actively opt out.
For further information visit the Connecting for Health Website
If you choose to opt out of the scheme, then you will need to complete a form and bring it along to the surgery.