We have a legal duty to protect our patient’s medical information and here at St Margaret’s we want to make sure that our patients have accurate information about this so that they can make an informed decision what is right for them.
Please take time to read the following information, or you can ask for a copy of the Sharing Information sheet that we have produced to help you make your choices and to communicate to us what action you would like us to take for you.
Summary Care Records
NHS England introduced this a couple of years ago. Presently records are kept in all the places where you currently receive care. These places can usually only share information from your records by letter, email, fax or phone. This can at times slow down treatment and sometimes information can be hard to access. Summary Care Records improves the safety and quality of patient care, because it is an electronic record it will give the healthcare staff faster, easier access to essential information about you and this will help provide you with safe treatment when you need care in an emergency or when the surgery is closed. Healthcare staff who can see your Summary Care Record will always ask your permission whenever they need to access this record and must be directly involved with caring for you, they will have an authorised NHS smart card, they will only be able to see the information that is necessary for them to do their job and will have their details recorded that they accessed your information. Your confidentiality will be protected by law as everyone working for the NHS must respect your confidentiality and keep all information about you secure. You can change your mind at any time, therefore if you have previously opted out you can opt in at any time, and if you have not yet opted out you can do so at any time.
In Summary
This sharing of your Summary Care record will only be used for emergency care. The record will contain information about any medicines that you are taking and any allergies or bad reactions to medicines that you have had so that anyone caring for you has the right information to treat you safely. Unless you opted out, information relating to your allergies and current medication is available at hospitals and surgeries around the U.K. If you wish to have your detail shared when necessary with hospitals within the UK then you need take no further action as this will be done on your behalf. If you wish to opt out, please fill in an opt out form available from reception or below.
Care data matters: a roadmap for better adult social care data – GOV.UK
The government wants to improve the quality of care and health services for all. By using information about the care you have received, those involved in providing care and health services can see how well they are doing and where improvements need to be made. NHS organizations share information about the care you receive with those who plan health and social care services, as well as with approved researchers and organizations outside the NHS, if this will benefit patient care. As a patient you may receive care and treatment from a number of places such as your GP practice, hospitals and community services. By bringing this information together from all the different places, we can compare the care provided in one area with the care provided in another so that we can see what works best. We will use information such as your postcode and NHS number to link your records from these different places. Records are linked in a secure system so your identity is protected. Details that could identify you will be removed before information is made available to others, such as those planning NHS services and approved researchers. We sometimes release confidential information to approved researchers, if this is allowed by law and meets the strict rules that are in place to protect your privacy.
In Summary
Your data may be shared with many organisations that are not directly concerned with your health. We are not able to opt out of this as a practice therefore it is important that you let us know as soon as possible if you wish to opt out, there is a form available from SCR patient preference form – NHS England Digital for you to complete that will ensure your data is not shared in this way.
Central Care Records
This initiative is to make your data available to only services within the Birmingham and Solihull area. If you have a Central Care Record it will make it possible for the people treating you to access relevant information from your GP, hospital, mental health, community and social care records. It will include your name, address, date of birth and your NHS number which will help identify you correctly to the people looking after you. Your details will be available to local hospitals, West Midlands Ambulance Service, Birmingham, Sandwell and Solihull Council staff, Community health in Solihull and Birmingham and Mental health trusts in Birmingham, Solihull and Black Country. If you wish to opt out of this, please let us know as soon as possible by filling out the opt out form and returning it to the surgery.
Learn more about the Shared Care Record
If you would like to learn more about the Shared Care record, we have extra information available.
- Find answers to Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
- Our privacy notice page explains how your information will be used
- Learn about your right to object
In Summary
Your medical data will only be shared with local hospitals and care organisations as appropriate. Your permission will be asked each time and it will be recorded on your notes that the healthcare professional has accessed your details.
| WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SUMMARY CARE RECORD AND CENTRAL CARE RECORD? | ||
| Summary Care Record – shared Nationally | Information held at surgery available for sharing | Central Care Record – shared locally |
| Y | Demographics, Name, address, NHS No. | Y |
| Y | Allergies | Y |
| Y | Medication | Y |
| Blood test results | Y | |
| Diagnosis | Y | |
| Past or present treatments | Y | |
| End of life care plans | Y | |
You will find additional information on the following websites:
Summary Care Record –NHS England » Summary care records
Central Care Records – Shared Care Record :: Birmingham and Solihull ICS
NHS Care Record Guarantee – Privacy notice :: Birmingham and Solihull ICS
NHS Digital –Home – NHS England Digital
To opt out or in to any of the sharing initiatives, please hand in this form to reception so that we keep your information secure as per your wishes.
