Confidentiality

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.
• Disclosure of identifiable information to outside agencies eg Solicitors, Insurance Companies etc. will only be done after receiving written consent from the patient.

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.

Suggestions & Complaints

We offer a practice complaints procedure to deal with comments, suggestions and complaints about the services we provide.  If you feel you wish to make a comment/complaint, please ask the receptionist for a complaints form.  Alternatively, you may speak to the Practice Manager who will give you further information.

Our aim is to give you the highest standard of service and we try to deal swiftly with any problems that may occur. 

We are an established teaching practice involved in Postgraduate Training for GP Registrars and Undergraduate Teaching for Medical Students.  We currently have two Registrars with us, both attached to the North Staffs GP Vocational Training Scheme. 

Occasionally we may ask for your consent for your consultation to be videotaped. The request will be in writing and you are under no obligation to consent. The videos will be used for teaching only and will only be seen by your doctor and the registrar or student.

Our practice Nurse are Mentors for the training of New Smear Takers and may have other nurses under supervision at your appointment.

The Hartshill Surgery is regularly visitied by independent doctors to ensure that standards remain high for teaching purposes. We hope you will welcome our Registrars and Students.

The West Midlands Deanery

North Staffs & Keele University Vocational Training Scheme

We at Hartshill Surgery will not tolerate aggressive or rude behaviour towards any member of our practice team or any visitor to the practice.

If it comes to our attention that a staff member /visitor has been subjected to such behaviour by a patient, that patient will either be immediately removed from the practice list or alternatively may receive a written warning and any recurrence of such behaviour would result in them being removed from the practice list.

Written notification of why such action has been taken will be provided.

       HARTSHILL SURGERY

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION POLICY

INTRODUCTION

The following policy sets out the approach to the Freedom of Information (FoI) Act by this practice.

POLICY

• The practice will comply with the FoI Act and sees it as an opportunity to enhance public trust and confidence in the practice. 

• The practice will maintain a comprehensive “Publication Scheme” that provides information which is readily accessible without the need for a formal FoI Request. 

• The practice will seek to satisfy all FoI requests promptly and within 20 working days.  However, if necessary we will extend this timescale to give full consideration to a Public Interest test.  If we do not expect to meet the deadline, we will inform the requester as soon as possible of the reasons for the delay and when we expect to have made a decision.

• The practice will continue to protect the personal date entrusted to us, by disclosing it only in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998

• The practice will provide advice and assistance to requesters to facilitate the use of FoI Act.  We will publish our procedures and assist requesters to clarify their requests so that they can obtain the information that they require.

• The practice will work with NHS Stoke-on-Trent and other bodies with whom we work to ensure that we can meet our FoI obligations, including the disclosure of any information that they hold on our behalf.

• The practice will apply the exemptions provided in the FoI Act and, where qualified exemptions exist, the Practice will disclose the information unless the balance of public interest lies in withholding it.

• The practice will consult with third parties before disclosing information that could affect their rights and interests.  However, according to the FoI Act, the Practice must take the final decision on disclosure

• The practice will charge for information requests in line with the FoI Act Fees Regulations or other applicable regulations, including the Data Protection Act 1998

• The practice will record all FoI Act requests and our responses and will monitor our performance in handling requests and complaints

• The practice will ensure that all staff are aware of their obligations under FoI Act and will include FoI Act education in the induction of all new staff

Feb 2009