Access to Health Records

Under the Data Protection Act 2018 and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) 2018, patients are entitled to request full copies of their medical records. This is commonly known as a Subject Access Request (SAR).

Whilst this service is usually free of charge, the surgery reserves the right to charge a reasonable fee for a SAR if the request is manifestly unfounded or excessive.

Everyone who works for the NHS or anyone receiving information from us has a legal duty to keep patient related information strictly confidential. You may be receiving care from other agencies as well as the NHS, such as the Social Services.

To give you the best care we may need to share some information about you. We will only pass on information about you if others involved in your care have a genuine need for it. In such cases only relevant information will be given.

We will not disclose any information to third parties without your express permission, unless there are exceptional circumstances, such as when the health and safety of others is at risk.

We are required by law to report certain information to the appropriate authorities. Occasions when we are obliged to pass on information include:

The law strictly controls the sharing of some types of very sensitive personal information by means of:

• Data Protection Act 1998
• Human Rights Act 1998
• Computer Misuse Act 1990
• Caldicott Guidelines for the NHS

Our commitment as a service provider:

• We aim to provide services to which all clients are entitled regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation, offending past, caring responsibilities or social class.
• We will make sure that our services are delivered equally and meet the diverse needs of our service users and clients by assessing and meeting the diverse needs of our clients.
• This policy is fully supported by senior management and has been agreed with employee representatives.
• This policy will be monitored and reviewed annually.
• We have clear procedures that enable our clients, candidates for jobs and employees to raise a grievance or make a complaint if they feel they have been unfairly treated.
• Breaches of our equality and diversity policy will be regarded as misconduct and could lead to disciplinary proceedings.

Policy Statements

Age

We will:

• Ensure that people of all ages are treated with respect and dignity.
• Ensure that people of working age are given equal access to our employment, training, development and promotion opportunities.
• Challenge discriminatory assumptions about younger and older people.

Disability

We will:

• Provide any reasonable adjustments to ensure disabled people have access to our services and employment opportunities.
• Challenge discriminatory assumptions about disabled people.
• Seek to continue to improve access to information by ensuring availability of loop systems, braille facilities, alternative formatting and sign language interpretation.

Race

We will:

• Challenge racism wherever it occurs.
• Respond swiftly and sensitively to racists incidents.
• Actively promote race equality in the company.

Gender

We will:

• Challenge discriminatory assumptions about women and men.
• Take positive action to redress the negative effects of discrimination against women and men.
• Offer equal access for women and men to representation, services, employment, training and pay and encourage other organisations to do the same.
• Provide support to prevent discrimination against transsexual people who have or who are about to undergo gender reassignment.

Sexual Orientation

We will:

• Ensure that we take account of the needs of lesbians, gay men and bisexuals.
• Promote positive images of lesbians, gay men and bisexuals.

Religion or Belief

We will:

• Ensure that patients’ religion or beliefs and related observances are respected and accommodated wherever possible.
• Respect people’s beliefs where the expression of those beliefs does not impinge on the legitimate rights of others.

All GP practices are required to declare the mean earnings (e.g. average pay) for GPs working to deliver NHS services to patients at each practice.

The average pay for GPs working in Benchill Medical Centre in the 2022/23 financial year was £73,213  before tax and National Insurance. This is for 2 full time GPs and 6 part time GPs who worked in the practice for more than 6 months.’

We are proud to be apart of the NHS and our mission is to provide safe, efficient healthcare for our patients and their families, and   to ensure that everyone working within our practice is happy in their work and feels valued and supported by the team.

As a patient, relative, carer, friend of a patient or any other member of the public, you may have questions about the services we provide and may need someone to turn to for on-the-spot help and advice.  This is where Patient Services can help.

Patient Services listen to your concerns and suggestions and will treat all information confidentially.

If you have a complaint about a hospital, mental health or community service, please contact them directly.

 For all complaints and enquiries about local GPs, Dentists, Pharmacists and Opticians please contact:

NHS England

Phone: 0300 3112233
Email: [email protected]
Post: NHS England, PO Box 16738, Redditch B97 9PT

 For all patient complaints and enquiries about any other local health service please contact:

Patient Services, North West Commissioning Support Unit (NWCSU)
Phone: 0161 212 6270

Email: [email protected]
Post: St James’s House, Pendleton Way, Salford M6 5FW

 If you need support in making a complaint please contact: 

Independent Complaints Advocacy (ICA)
Phone: 0808 8010390
Email: [email protected]
Post: 5th Floor, Arthur House, Chorlton Street, Manchester, M1 3FH

Fair Processing Notice for Patients

Covid 19 – Transparency Notice

Transparency Notice – Covid19

Childrens GDPR Poster

Your Information, Your Rights

Being transparent and providing accessible information to patients about how we will use your personal information is a key element of the Data Protection Act 2018 and the EU General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR).

The following notice reminds you of your rights in respect of the above legislation and how your GP Practice will use your information for lawful purposes in order to deliver your care and the effective management of the local NHS system.

This notice reflects how we use information for:

• The management of patient records;
• Communication concerning your clinical, social and supported care;
• Ensuring the quality of your care and the best clinical outcomes are achieved through clinical audit and retrospective review;
• Participation in health and social care research; and
• The management and clinical planning of services to ensure that appropriate care is in place for our patients today and in the future.

Data Controller

As your registered GP practice, we are the data controller for any personal data that we hold about you.

What information do we collect and use?

All personal data must be processed fairly and lawfully, whether is it received directly from you or from a third party in relation to the your care.

We will collect the following types of information from you or about you from a third party (provider organisation) engaged in the delivery of your care:

• ‘Personal data’ meaning any information relating to an identifiable person who can be directly or indirectly identified from the data. This includes, but is not limited to name, date of birth, full postcode, address, next of kin and NHS number

And

• ‘Special category / sensitive data’ such as medical history including details of appointments and contact with you, medication, emergency appointments and admissions, clinical notes, treatments, results of investigations, supportive care arrangements, social care status, race, ethnic origin, genetics and sexual orientation.

Your healthcare records contain information about your health and any treatment or care you have received previously (e.g. from an acute hospital, GP surgery, community care provider, mental health care provider, social services). These records may be electronic, a paper record or a mixture of both. We use a combination of technologies and working practices to ensure that we keep your information secure and confidential.

Why do we collect this information?

The NHS Act 2006 and the Health and Social Care Act 2012 invests statutory functions on GP Practices to promote and provide the health service in England, improve quality of services, reduce inequalities, conduct research, review performance of services and deliver education and training. To do this we will need to process your information in accordance with current data protection legislation to:

• Protect your vital interests;
• Pursue our legitimate interests as a provider of medical care, particularly where the individual is a child or a vulnerable adult;
• Perform tasks in the public’s interest;
• Deliver preventative medicine, medical diagnosis, medical research; and
• Manage the health and social care system and services.

How is the information collected?

Your information will be collected either electronically using secure NHS Mail or a secure electronic transferred over an NHS encrypted network connection. In addition physical information will be sent to your practice. This information will be retained within your GP’s electronic patient record or within your physical medical records.

Who will we share your information with?

In order to deliver and coordinate your health and social care, we may share information with the following organisations:

• Local GP Practices in order to deliver extended primary care services
• NHS – Manchester Healthcare Commissioning / Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT)
• 111 and Out of Hours Service
• Social Services and Community Care services including Pharamcies
• Voluntary Support Organisations commissioned to provide services by MHCC – Manchester Health Care Commissioning

Your information will only be shared if it is appropriate for the provision of your care or required to satisfy our statutory function and legal obligations.

Your information will not be transferred outside of the European Union.

Whilst we might share your information with the above organisations, we may also receive information from them to ensure that your medical records are kept up to date and so that your GP can provide the appropriate care.

In addition we receive data from NHS Digital (as directed by the Department of Health) such as the uptake of flu vaccinations and disease prevalence in order to assist us to improve “out of hospital care”.

How do we maintain the confidentiality of your records?

We are committed to protecting your privacy and will only use information that has been collected lawfully. Every member of staff who works for an NHS organisation has a legal obligation to keep information about you confidential. We maintain our duty of confidentiality by conducting regular training and awareness, ensuring access to personal data is limited to the appropriate staff and information is only shared with organisations and individuals that have a legitimate and legal basis for access.

Information is not held for longer than is necessary.   We will hold your information in accordance with the Records Management Code of Practice for Health and Social Care 2016.

Consent and Objections

Do I need to give my consent?

The GDPR sets a high standard for consent. Consent means offering people genuine choice and control over how their data is used. When consent is used properly, it helps you build trust and enhance your reputation. However consent is only one potential lawful basis for processing information. Therefore your GP practice may not need to seek your explicit consent for every instance of processing and sharing your information, on the condition that the processing is carried out in accordance with this notice. Benchill Medical Practice will contact you if they are required to share your information for any other purpose which is not mentioned within this notice. Your consent will be documented within your electronic patient record.

What will happen if I withhold my consent or raise an objection?

You have the right to write to withdraw your consent to any time for any particular instance of processing, provided consent is the legal basis for the processing. Please contact the Data Protection Officer at the practice for further information and to raise your objection.

Health Risk Screening / Risk Stratification

Health Risk Screening or Risk Stratification is a process that helps your GP to determine whether you are at risk of an unplanned admission or deterioration in health. By using selected information such as age, gender, NHS number, diagnosis, existing long term condition(s), medication history, patterns of hospital attendances, admissions and periods of access to community care your GP will be able to judge if you are likely to need more support and care from time to time, or if the right services are in place to support the local population’s needs.

To summarise how Risk Stratification is used in the NHS to:

• Help decide if a patient is at a greater risk of suffering from a particular condition;
• Prevent an emergency admission;
• Identify if a patient needs medical help to prevent a health condition from getting worse; and/or
• Review and amend provision of current health and social care services.

Benchill Medical Practice will use computer based algorithms or calculations to identify their registered patients who are at most risk, with support from the local Commissioning Support Unit and/or a third party accredited Risk Stratification provider. The risk stratification contracts are arranged by MHCCG – Manchester Health & Care Commissioning in accordance with the current Section 251 Agreement. Neither the CSU nor your local CCG will at any time have access to your personal or confidential data. They will only act on behalf of your GP to organise the risk stratification service with appropriate contractual technical and security measures in place.

Benchill Medical Practice will routinely conduct the risk stratification process outside of your GP appointment. This process is conducted electronically and without human intervention. The resulting report is then reviewed by a multidisciplinary team of staff within the Practice. This may result in contact being made with you if alterations to the provision of your care are identified.

[A Section 251 Agreement is where the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has granted permission for personal data to be used for the purposes of risk stratification, in acknowledgement that it would overburden the NHS to conduct manual reviews of all patient registers held by individual providers.]

As mentioned above, you have the right to object to your information being used in this way. However you should be aware that your objection may have a negative impact on the timely and proactive provision of your direct care. Please contact the Practice Manager to discuss how disclosure of your personal data can be limited.

Sharing of Electronic Patient Records within the NHS

Electronic patient records are kept in most places where you receive healthcare. Our local electronic system EMIS Web enables your record to be shared with organisations involved in your direct care, such as:

• GP practices
• Community services such as district nurses, rehabilitation services, telehealth and out of hospital services.
• Child health services that undertake routine treatment or health screening
• Urgent care organisations, minor injury units or out of hours services
• Community hospitals
• Palliative care hospitals
• Care Homes
• Mental Health Trusts
• Hospitals
• Social Care organisations
• Pharmacies

In addition, NHS England have implemented the [Summary Care Record/ Emergency Care Summary/ Individual Health Record] which contains information including medication you are taking and any bad reactions to medication that you have had in the past.

In most cases, particularly for patients with complex conditions and care arrangements, the shared electronic health record plays a vital role in delivering the best care and a coordinated response, taking into account all aspects of a person’s physical and mental health. Many patients are understandably not able to provide a full account of their care, or may not be in a position to do so. The shared record means patients do not have to repeat their medical history at every care setting.

Your record will be automatically setup to be shared with the organisations listed above, however you have the right to ask your GP to disable this function or restrict access to specific elements of your record. This will mean that the information recorded by your GP will not be visible at any other care setting.

You can also reinstate your consent at any time by giving your permission to override your previous dissent.

Invoice Validation

If you have received treatment within the NHS, the local Commissioning Support Unit (CSU) may require access to your personal information to determine which Clinical Commissioning Group is responsible for payment for the treatment or procedures you have received. Information such as your name, address, date of treatment and associated treatment code may be passed onto the CSU to enable them to process the bill. These details are held in a secure environment and kept confidential. This information is only used to validate invoices in accordance with the current Section 251 Agreement, and will not be shared for any further commissioning purposes.

Your Right of Access to Your Records

The Data Protection Act and General Data Protection Regulations allows you to find out what information is held about you including information held within your medical records, either in electronic or physical format. This is known as the “right of subject access”. If you would like to have access to all or part of your records, you can make a request in writing to the organisation that you believe holds your information. This can be your GP, or a provider that is or has delivered your treatment and care. You should however be aware that some details within your health records may be exempt from disclosure, however this will in the interests of your wellbeing or to protect the identity of a third party. If you would like access to your GP record please submit your request in writing to:

The Practice Manager or www.benchillmedicalpractice.co.uk

Complaints

In the event that you feel Benchill Medical Practice your GP Practice has not complied with the current data protection legislation, either in responding to your request or in our general processing of your personal information, you should raise your concerns in the first instance in writing to the Practice Manager.

If you remain dissatisfied with our response you can contact the Information Commissioner’s Office at Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wimslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF – Enquiry Line: 01625 545700 or online at www.ico.gov.uk

The care of your health is a partnership between yourself and the practice team. The success of that partnership depends on both partners fulfilling their role. In particular we ask you to:

1. Attend appointments punctually.
2. Be patient if a clinician is running late, he/she may be dealing with complex problems and next time it may be you who needs extra time.
3. If you no longer require or you are unable to attend your appointment please let us know as soon as possible so that the slot can be reused.
4. Request a home visit only if you are genuinely too ill to come to the surgery.
5. Use urgent appointments responsibly and considerately for medical conditions that cannot safely wait until the next routine appointment.
6. Let us know without delay if you change your name, address or telephone number (in addition to this, if you are under the care of the hospital you will need to inform the relevant department).
7. Please remember you are ultimately responsible for your own health and that of your children. We will give you our professional help and advice but only you can act on it.

We are committed to giving you the best possible service and take our responsibilities towards our patients very seriously. The following is a list of what you can expect from all doctors and staff at Benchill Medical practice.

• We will treat you with courtesy and respect at all times and we will make every endeavour to meet your reasonable request.
• We will respect your privacy and dignity at all times.
• Everyone working in the NHS has a legal duty to keep information about you confidential.
• People involved in your care will give you their name and ensure that you know how to contact them. The surgery is well sign posted and the doctors’ names indicated beside their surgery doors.
• We run an appointment system in this practice. You will be given a time at which the doctor or nurse expects to be able to see you. You should not wait more than 30 minutes in the waiting room without being given an explanation for the delay.
• You will be given accurate information and answers to questions about your health and in particular:
  • Any illness and its treatment
  • Possible side effectso Prevention and avoidance of illness recurring
  • Details of proposed investigations
• You have the right to see your medical records subject to the limitations of law (Data Protection Act 1998 and Access to Health Records Act 1990).
• If we fail to meet your expectations please let us know without delay in a positive and constructive manner.

Suggestions and Comments

At Benchill Medical practice we aim to provide a high quality health care service which is delivered in a friendly and efficient manner. Please tell us if you have any constructive comments or suggestions that may help us to improve the way we provide our services.

It is also of great benefit to the morale of our staff to receive compliments and thanks. If you are particularly pleased with a service you have received please let us know.

Contact us with any suggestions or comments

Complaints

Sometimes you may need to raise a complaint. Please contact our Practice Manager (Melanie Potts) or alternatively our Reception Manager (Christina Bloor). Full details will be taken and a decision made on how best to undertake the investigation.

Your complaint should be acknowledged by the GP practice either verbally or in writing within 3 working days. As part of this acknowledgment, you should be informed about the length of time it will take to investigate your complaint. We aim to reply within 40 working days and up to 60 working days for more complex cases.

During the investigation you should be kept up to date with the progress of your complaint.

Complaint Leaflet

Complaint Form

We are a GP training practice which means that we have trainee GP’s working in our practice for 6 or 12 month placements.

The trainees are fully qualified doctors who have been working in hospitals for at least 2 years. When working in the practice their work is supervised by our trainer, Dr Norris. Who is available for advice.

We welcome our trainees and find it a stimulating experience to have them working with us.

As part of their training they will sometimes need to video their consultations. You will always be asked for your consent if videoing is needed, and you may decline if you do not want to be videoed. We are appreciative if you do consent, in the knowledge that your confidentiality is key. By giving consent you are contributing to the development of our future GP’s.

At Benchill Medical Practice we follow a zero tolerance policy regarding abusive behavior towards staff and patients. This includes the use of offensive language and speech that specifically references homophobia, biphobia and transphobia. Patients who display violent, abusive or threatening behaviour towards the doctors or staff will be removed from the practice list.

​We have, and follow, an Equality and Diversity policy, taking into account the needs of all patients and staff, including on the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity and trans status. This policy is reviewed and updated with staff undergoing training, every 12 months.