Confidentiality & Medical Records

The practice complies with data protection and access to medical records legislation. Identifiable information about you will be shared with others in the following circumstances:

• To provide further medical treatment for you e.g. from district nurses and hospital services.
• To help you get other services e.g. from the social work department. This requires your consent.
• When we have a duty to others e.g. in child protection cases anonymised patient information will also be used at local and national level to help the Health Board and Government plan services e.g. for diabetic care.

If you do not wish anonymous information about you to be used in such a way, please let us know.

Reception and administration staff require access to your medical records in order to do their jobs. These members of staff are bound by the same rules of confidentiality as the medical staff.

Freedom of Information

Information about the General Practioners and the practice required for disclosure under this act can be made available to the public. All requests for such information should be made to the practice manager.

Access to Records

In accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998 and Access to Health Records Act, patients may request to see their medical records. Such requests should be made through the practice manager and may be subject to an administration charge. No information will be released without the patient consent unless we are legally obliged to do so.

Complaints

We welcome your comments on the services provided at Lozells Medical Practice, good or bad to help us review our policies.

Our practice manager will be happy to discuss any concerns you may have about the practice.

If, after speaking to the practice manager, you are still unhappy then please put your concerns in writing and address them to the practice manager.

You will then receive a written acknowledgment of your complaint within 3 working days .

You will be notified of the results of the final investigation within 2 weeks. Should you continue to be dissatisfied then you will be advised on how to pursue your concerns further.

Practice & Patient Responsibilities

We endeavour to provide the best possible service to our patients. You have a right to expect a high standard of care from the Surgery.

We adhere strictly to our confidentiality policy and kindly request patients to respect this and not to request information about anyone other than themselves. All patient records are confidential. You have the right to request access to your medical records. Please contact us if this is required. On occasion, the law requires us to pass on information. Please be assured that only specific information will be passed on if there is a genuine clinical need, for example, child protection issues or issues related to certain communicable diseases which may pose a threat to the general public.

In line with Government recommendations for the NHS, we operate a Zero-Tolerance policy for inappropriate or threatening behaviour. Such behaviour may result in removal from our practice list. We aim to treat you courteously at all times and expect you to treat our staff in a similarly respectful way. Remember, we are here to help you.

Patients are requested to attend all booked appointments.

Please inform the Surgery of any change on your circumstances, such as change of address, phone number or surname.

Chaperones can be arranged on request.

Violence Policy

The NHS operate a zero tolerance policy with regard to violence and abuse and the practice has the right to remove violent patients from the list with immediate effect in order to safeguard practice staff, patients and other persons.

Violence in this context includes actual or threatened physical violence or verbal abuse which leads to fear for a person’s safety. In this situation we will notify the patient in writing of their removal from the list and record in the patient’s medical records the fact of the removal and the circumstances leading to it.