Practice Policies & Patient Information

Changes to this Privacy Policy

Chaperones

Comments and Complaints

We aim to offer a friendly, personal, comprehensive and high standard of family health care to all our patients. We always welcome your feedback and value your comments and suggestions. Please get in touch via our online form or by telephone and let us know your thoughts.

We endeavor to listen to your comments and act appropriately on the constructive feedback to deliver the best for you and your family.

Complaints

The surgery operates a complaints procedure as part of the NHS system for dealing with complaints. Our system meets national criteria. We hope that problems can be sorted out easily and quickly, if your problem cannot be sorted out this way and you wish to make a complaint you should let us know as soon as possible. Complaints should be addressed to the practice manager or any of the doctors, alternatively you can ask for an appointment with the practice manager to discuss your concerns.

We shall acknowledge your complaint within three working days and aim to have resolution to your complaint within 40 days.

We will:

Find out what happened and what went wrong
Make it possible for you to discuss the problem with those concerned; if you would like to do this
Keep you regularly updated
Make sure you receive an apology, where this is appropriate
Identify what we can do to make sure the problem doesn’t happen again

You can download a patient information leaflet that explains the surgery’s complaints procedure by clicking on the link below

Our Complaints Procedure

Data Protection Legislation

RICKLETON MEDICAL CENTRE

DATA PROTECTION LEGISLATION – YOUR RIGHTS

Data Protection Legislation: Your Rights

Right to be informed:

You have the right to be provided with information on the identity of the controller, the reasons for processing their personal data and other relevant information necessary to ensure the fair and transparent processing of personal data.

Right of Access:

You have the right to obtain the following:

confirmation of whether, and where, the controller is processing their personal data;
information about the purposes of the processing;
information about the categories of data being processed;
information about the categories of recipients with whom the data may be shared;
information about the period for which the data will be stored (or the criteria used to determine that period);
information about the existence of the rights to erasure, to rectification, to restriction of processing and to object to processing;
information about the existence of the right to complain to the DPA;
where the data were not collected from the data subject, information as to the source of the data; and
information about the existence of, and an explanation of the logic involved in, any automated processing that has a significant effect on data subjects.

Additionally, you may request a copy of the personal data being processed. This information will be provided to you within 30 days of your request, unless we inform you that more time is required, and will be provided Free of Charge. However, if you make repetitive requests or require further copies of the information, you may be charged for this.

Right to Rectification

We must ensure that inaccurate or incomplete data are erased or rectified. You have the right to have inaccurate information corrected or in certain circumstances erased from your records.

Right to Erasure (Right to be Forgotten)

You have the right to erasure of personal data (the “right to be forgotten”) if:

the data are no longer needed for their original purpose (and no new lawful purpose exists);
the lawful basis for the processing is your consent, and you withdraw that consent, and no other lawful ground exists;
You exercises the right to object, and the controller has no overriding grounds for continuing the processing;
the data have been processed unlawfully; or erasure is necessary for compliance with EU law or the national law.

The Trust can refuse to erase your data in the following circumstances:

When keeping your data is necessary for reasons of freedom of expression and information (this includes journalism and academic, artistic and literary purposes).
When the Trust is legally obliged to keep hold of your data.
When keeping hold of your data is necessary for reasons of public health.
When keeping your data is necessary for establishing, exercising or defending legal claims.
When erasing your data would prejudice scientific or historical research, or archiving that is in the public interest.

The majority of processing of healthcare related personal information is undertaken under our statutory duty to provide such care. This means that we are required by law to hold your personal data and you do not have the ability to have that data erased in most circumstances.

Right to Restrict Processing

You have the right to restrict the processing of personal data (meaning that the data may only be held by the controller, and may only be used for limited purposes) if:

the accuracy of the data is contested (and only for as long as it takes to verify that accuracy);
the processing is unlawful and you request restriction (as opposed to exercising the right to erasure);
the controller no longer needs the data for their original purpose, but the data are still required by the controller to establish, exercise or defend legal rights; or

if verification of overriding grounds is pending, in the context of an erasure request.

Where we have disclosed personal data to any third parties, and you have subsequently exercised any of the rights of rectification, erasure or blocking, the we must notify those third parties of the data subject’s exercising of those rights.

We are exempt from this obligation if it is impossible or would require disproportionate effort. You are also entitled to request information about the identities of those third parties. Where we have made the data public, and the data subject exercises these rights, the controller must take reasonable steps (taking costs into account) to inform third parties that the data subject has exercised those rights.

Right of Data Portability

You have a right to transfer your personal data between controllers:

The right to data portability only applies when:

we are processing your data with consent or for the performance of a contract; and
the processing is automated.

The legal basis for processing your information is based on our statutory obligations and not your consent. Data is also not processed by automated means so this right does not apply to the data we hold about you.

Right to Object to Processing

You have the right to object, on grounds relating to their particular situation, to the processing of personal data, where the basis for that processing is either:

public interest; or
legitimate interests of the controller.

We must cease such processing unless we can:

demonstrates compelling legitimate grounds for the processing which override the interests, rights and freedoms of the data subject; or
require the data in order to establish, exercise or defend our legal rights.

Right to Object to Processing for Direct Marketing

You have the right to object to the processing of personal data for the purpose of direct marketing, including profiling. We do not use your personal data for Direct Marketing purposes unless you have provided us with explicit consent to do so.

Right to object to processing for scientific, historical or statistical purposes

Where your personal data are processed for scientific and historical research purposes or statistical purposes, you the right to object, unless the processing is necessary for the performance of a task carried out for reasons of public interest.

10. Right to not be evaluated on the basis of automated processing

You have the right not to be subject to a decision based solely on automated processing which significantly affect you. The Trust does not undertake any automated processing of this nature.

GP Net Earnings

NHS England require that the net earnings of doctors engaged in the practice is publicised, and the required disclosure is shown below. However it should be noted that the prescribed method for calculating earnings is potentially misleading because it takes no account of how much time doctors spend working in the practice, and should not be used to form any judgement about GP earnings, nor to make any comparison with any other practice.

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 this practice in the last full financial year was £133,209 before Tax and National insurance. This is for 1 full time GP, Zero part time GPs and 1 locum GP who worked in the practice for more than six months.

How Data in Your GP Record is Used and How you can Control the use (opt-out)

As a practice, we fully respect your right as a patient to control your data.

We outline our privacy policy https://www.rickletonmedicalcentre.nhs.uk/gdpr/ in more detail on our website and explain how we share data with other providers, including the Great North Care Record and NHS Digital for secondary use. You have the right to opt-out at any time from data being shared.

Your data is used in broadly two different ways:

1. To provide you with care. This is called “Primary Use“

2. To allow for planning and research to be done. This is called “Secondary Use“ Both uses will only be made where it is considered secure and appropriate to use patient data. Opting-out of data sharing is an option for all patients, however it is not without potential downsides. For Primary Use data, if you opt-out and need care in a local hospital, for example, it may be much harder for the staff to access important medical information about you needed to provide safe and effective care.

For Secondary Use, the downsides are more indirect. If everyone in the country were to opt-out, it would make it much harder to ensure funding is used in the NHS to develop services where they are needed. It would also be harder to develop new treatments. It is possible to opt-out of specific parts of data sharing, while keeping some elements of data sharing in place. It is very common, for example, for people who have privacy concerns about Secondary Use, to be happy to continue sharing data for Primary Use/Direct Care.

The information below summarises what opt-outs are possible, and how to request them: How data in your GP record is used, and how you can control the use Primary Use – sharing your data for your direct care Who it is shared with How it is used How to opt out Summary Care Record These are used by NHS hospitals and other providers (e.g. midwives) to ensure they have the data needed to provide you with the right care.

Opt out through your GP practice – contact the surgery reception to speak to the practice manager/deputy practice manager to discuss this and we will be able to apply the opt-out Great North Care Record Secondary Use – Using your data to design health services and do health research Who it is shared with How it is used How to opt out Local NHS Organisations (such as Clinical Commissioning Groups) Using data to plan how to design local services around the needs of the population Use a ‘type-1 opt out’ – Please send this form to the practice by emailing to (add surgery email address) nhs.net NHS Digital Using data to plan and design national services around the needs of the population External research organisations Using data for various research purposes Use the National Data Opt-out – Visit the NHS website, use the NHS App or call 0300 3035678 How to manage your sharing preferences using the NHS App You can view or change your current preference at any time.

To view and change your preference in the NHS App:

1. Go to Your health 2. Select Choose if data from your health and care records is shared for planning and research.

3. Select Make your choice.

4. Review the information on the page, then select Start now.

5. View your preference, then select Change if you want to change it. 6. Update your choice, then select Submit. You can also visit www.nhs.uk/your-nhs-data-matters.

Named Accountable GP

The NHS Zero Tolerance Policy

Use of Personal Information Provided by the User

Where personal information (e.g. name, address, telephone number etc) is provided to the GP Practice via its website for whatever purpose (e.g. registration, survey, feedback), it is made clear to the individual what the information collected will be used for and who it will be provided to. The GP Practice will only use the information collected for the stated purpose.

At this current time, any personal information provided, is only used by the GP Practice. It will not sell, trade, provide or rent personal information to third parties. Specific personal information will be released where the NHS is required to do so by law, e.g. court order. Transfer of data will be done so on the express permission of the supplying individual.

When you submit personal information, you consent to our use of the information as set out in this privacy policy.