The Long Melford Practice Privacy Notice
Your Information
We take your privacy very seriously. We are registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office as a Data Controller and our registration number can be found by searching the ICO Register using This Link.
We aim to provide you with the highest quality health care. To do this we must keep records about you, your health and the care we have provided or plan to provide to you.
Your doctor and other health professionals caring for you, such as nurses or physiotherapists, keep records about your health and treatment so that they are able to provide you with the best possible care.
These records are called your ‘health care record’ and may be stored in paper form or on computer and electronic systems and may include Personal Data;
- basic details about you, such as address, date of birth, NHS number, and next of kin
as well as Sensitive Personal Data;
contact we have had with you, such as clinical visits
- notes and reports about your health
- details and records about your treatment and care
- results of x-rays, laboratory tests etc
Healthcare providers are permitted to collect, store, use and share this information under Data Protection Legislation which has a specific section related to healthcare information.
If you have any questions or wish to make a request in relation to your information, please contact us using the details on our main page or contact our Data Protection Officer at c.browning@nhs.net
What We Do With Your Information
Updated 18th April 2019
- Refer you to other healthcare providers when you need other service or tests
- Discuss or share information about your health or care with other health or social care providers
- Share samples with laboratories for testing (like blood samples)
- Share test results with hospitals or community services (like blood test results)
- Allow out of hours or extended hours GPs to look at your health record when you are going to an appointment
- Send prescriptions to a pharmacy
- Text patients in relation to healthcare services
- Samples are provided to the courier for delivery to pathology
- Share reports with the coroner
- Receive reports of appointments you have attended elsewhere such as with the community nurse or if you have had a stay in hospital
- Produce medical reports on request from third parties such as the DVLA or your employer
- Movement of Patient records to Primary Care Support England
14th April 2019: Amended to include "Discuss or share information about your health or care with other health or social care providers"
What Else Do We Use Your Information For?
Along with activities related directly to your care, we also use information in ways which allow us to check that care is safe and provide data for the improvement and planning of services.
- Quality / payment / performance reports are provided to service commissioners
- As part of clinical research – information that identifies you will be removed, unless you have consented to being identified
- Undertaking clinical audits within the practice
- Supporting staff training
- Incident and complaint management
Sharing Information When Required By Law
Sometimes we will be required by law to share your information and will not always be able to discuss this with you directly.
For example:
For the purposes of detection or prevention of crime, where it is in the wider public interest, to safeguard children or vulnerable adults,
For reporting infectious diseases or where required by court order.
Care Quality Commission Access to Health Records
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has powers under the Health and Social Care Act 2008 to access and use your health information where it is necessary to carry out their functions as a regulator.
This means that CQC inspectors may ask to look at certain records to decide whether we are providing safe, good quality care.
More information about the CQC can be obtained on their website https://www.cqc.org.uk/about-us/our-policies/privacy-statement
Primary Care Networks
We are a member of a Primary Care Network (PCN). This means we will be working closely with a number of Practices and health and care organisations to provide healthcare services to you.
During the course of our work we may share your information with these Practices and health care organisations/professionals. We will only share this information where it is necessary for healthcare purposes.
When we do this, we will always ensure that appropriate agreements are in place to protect your information and keep it safe and secure. This is also what the Law requires us to do.
Below is a list of the Primary Care Networks across East and West Suffolk. You can find out which organisations (including your GP practice) have come together to form a network and share healthcare information in order to deliver services;
Barrack Lane and Ivry St (BLISS) Primary Care Network
Barrack Lane Medical Centre
Ivry Street Medical Practice
Barrack Lane and Ivry St (BLISS) PCN Support Organisation
Suffolk GP Federation
Mid Suffolk Primary Care Network
Stowhealth
Combs Ford Surgery
Debenham Group Practice
Mid Suffolk PCN Support Organisation
Suffolk GP Federation
North West Ipswich Primary Care Network
Deben Road Surgery
Norwich Road Surgery
Chesterfield Drive Surgery
NW Ipswich PCN Support Organisation
Suffolk GP Federation
Felixstowe Primary Care Network
The Birches Medical Centre
Martlesham Heath Surgery
Haven Health
Howard House
Grove Medical
Walton
Felixstowe PCN Support Organisation
Suffolk GP Federation
East Ipswich Primary Care Network
Dr Solway and Dr Mallick Practice
Ravenswood Medical Practice
Orchard Medical Practice
East Ipswich PCN Support Organisation
Suffolk GP Federation
North West Suffolk Primary Care Network
Fressingfield Medical Centre
Eye Health Centre
Mendlesham Health Centre
NW Suffolk PCN Support Organisation
Suffolk GP Federation
North East Ipswich Primary Care Network
Felixstowe Road Medical Practice
Two Rivers Medical Centre
NE Ipswich PCN Support Organisation
Suffolk GP Federation
North East Coastal Primary Care Network
The Leiston Surgery
Aldeburgh Church Farm Surgery
Saxmundham Health
Framlingham Medical Practice
NE Coastal PCN Support Organisation
Suffolk GP Federation
Orwell Primary Care Network
Burlington Road Surgery
Hawthorn Drive Surgery
The Derby Road Practice
Orwell PCN Support Organisation
Suffolk GP Federation
Bury St Edmunds Primary Care Network
Angel Hill Surgery
Swan Surgery
The Guildhall & Barrow Surgery
Mount Farm Surgery
Victoria Surgery
Bury St Edmunds PCN Support Organisation
Suffolk GP Federation
DHG South Primary Care Network
The Peninsula Practice
Little St John's Street Surgery
Wickham Market Medical Centre
Framfield House Surgery
DHG South PCN Support Organisation
Suffolk GP Federation
WGGL Primary Care Network
The Long Melford Practice
Wickhambrook Surgery
Glemsford Surgery
Clare Guildhall Surgery
WGGL PCN Support Organisation
Suffolk GP Federation
Forest Heath Primary Care Network
Reynard Surgery
Brandon Medical Practice
The Rookery Medical Centre
Orchard House Surgery
Oakfield Surgery
Forest Surgery
Lakenheath Surgery
Market Cross Surgery
Forest Heath PCN Support Organisation
Suffolk GP Federation
South Rural Primary Care Network
Hadleigh Health Centre
Holbrook and Shotley Surgery
Needham Market Practices
Bildeston Health Centre
The Constable Country Rural Medical Practice
South Rural PCN Support Organisation
Suffolk GP Federation
If you would like to more information about Primary Care Networks and information sharing, please contact our Data Protection Officer c.browning@nhs.net
Sharing Partners and Projects
Our practice works in partnership with some external organisations to support us to deliver some of our services.
The Projects include:
Diabetic Eye Screening
Diabetic eye screening is a key part of diabetes care. People with diabetes are at risk of damage from diabetic retinopathy, a condition that can lead to sight loss if it's not treated.
The practice regularly identifies patients within their clinical system that are eligible for eye screening and sends their details to a partner called Health Intelligence who will invite them to be screened by the eye screening service.
Health Checks
The NHS Health Check programme aims to help prevent heart disease, stroke, diabetes, kidney disease and certain types of dementia. Everyone between the ages of 40 and 74, who have not already been diagnosed with one of these conditions or have certain risk factors, will be invited (once every five years) to have a check to assess their risk of heart disease, stroke, kidney disease and diabetes and will be given support and advice to help them reduce or manage that risk.
Your practice will identify patients that are eligible and share contact information with Anglia Community Enterprise who deliver this service.
More Information about Health Check Services
More Information about Anglia Community Enterprise
How Anglia Community Enterprise Use Your Information
Child Health Immunisations
You practice shares information about children that are eligible for immunisations with an organisation called Provide CIC who schedule vaccination appointments and send invitation letters to practice patients on a weekly basis.
This activity is part of the Healthy Child Agenda and your practice are required by NHS England to take part.
More Information about the Healthy Child National Agenda
More Information about Provide CIC
How Provide CIC Use Your Information
Information Technology
The practice will use third parties to provide services that involve your information such as;
- Removal and destruction of confidential waste
- Provision of clinical systems
- Provision of connectivity and servers
- Digital dictation services
Data analytics or warehousing (these allow us to make decisions about care or see how effectively the practice is run – personal data will never be sold or made available to organisations not related to your care delivery)
We have contracts in place with these third parties that prevent them from using it in any other way that instructed. These contracts also require them to maintain good standards of security to ensure your confidentiality.
Information Access and Rights
Data protection law provides you with a number of rights that the practice is committed to supporting you with;
Right to Access
You have the right to obtain:
- Confirmation that your information is being used, stored or shared by the practice
- A copy of information held about you
We will respond to your request within one month of receipt or will tell you when it might take longer.
We are required to validate your identity including the identity of someone making a request on your behalf
Right to Object or Withdrawn Consent
We mainly use, store and share your information because we are permitted in order to deliver your healthcare but you do have a right to object to us doing this.
Where we are using, storing and sharing your information based on explicit consent you have provided, you have a right to withdraw that consent at any time.
Our Data Protection Officer will be happy to speak with you about any concerns you have.
Right to Correction
If information about you is incorrect, you are entitled to request that we correct it
There may be occasions, where we are required by law to maintain the original information – our Data Protection Officer will talk to you about this and you may request that the information is not used during this time
We will respond to your request within one month of receipt or will tell you when it might take longer.
Right to Complain
You also have the right to make complaints and request investigations into the way your information is used. Please contact our Data Protection Officer or visit the link below for more information.
For more detailed information on your rights visit https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr/individual-rights/