Practice Policies & Patient Information

Complaint Procedure

If you have a complaint or concern about the service you have received from the doctors or any of the staff working in this GP surgery, please let us know. This includes Primary Care Network staff working as part of our GP surgery. We operate a complaints procedure as part of an NHS system for dealing with complaints. Our complaints system meets national criteria.

How to complain

We hope that most problems can be sorted out easily and quickly when they arise and with the person concerned. For example, by requesting a face-to-face meeting to discuss your concerns.

If your problem cannot be sorted out this way and you wish to make a complaint, we would like you to let us know as soon as possible. By making your complaint quickly, it is easier for us to establish what happened. If it is not possible to do that, please let us have details of your complaint:

Within 6 months of the incident that caused the problem; or
Within 6 months of discovering that you have a problem, provided this is within 12 months of the incident.

Complaints should be addressed to the GP surgery team verbally or in writing. Call us on 014232 354366 and ask to speak with a member of the management team or email [email protected]. Please be sure to title your email complaint so we can see its dealt with in a timely fashion.

Alternatively, you may ask for an appointment with the GP surgery to discuss your concerns. They will explain the complaints procedure to you and make sure your concerns are dealt with promptly. Please be as specific as possible about your complaint.

What we will do

We will acknowledge your complaint within three working days. We will aim to have investigated your complaint within ten working days of the date you raised it with us. We will then offer you an explanation or a meeting with the people involved, if you would like this. When we investigate your complaint, we will aim to:

Find out what happened and what went wrong.
Make it possible for you to discuss what happened with those concerned, if you would like this.
Make sure you receive an apology, where this is appropriate.
Identify what we can do to make sure the problem does not happen again.

Complaining on behalf of someone else

We take medical confidentiality seriously. If you are complaining on behalf of someone else, we must know that you have their permission to do so. A note signed by the person concerned will be needed unless they are incapable (because of illness) of providing this.

Complaining to NHS England

We hope that you will use our Practice Complaints Procedure if you are unhappy. We believe this will give us the best chance of putting right whatever has gone wrong and an opportunity to improve our GP surgery.

However, if you feel you cannot raise the complaint with us directly, please contact NHS England. You can find more information on how to make a complaint at https://www.england.nhs.uk/contact-us/complaint/complaining-to-nhse/.

Unhappy with the outcome of your complaint?

If you are not happy with the way your complaint has been dealt with by the GP surgery and NHS England and would like to take the matter further, you can contact the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO). The PHSO makes final decisions on unresolved complaints about the NHS in England. It is an independent service which is free for everyone to use.

To take your complaint to the Ombudsman, visit the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman website or call 0345 015 4033

Need help making a complaint?

If you want help making a complaint, Healthwatch Hounslow can help you find independent NHS complaints advocacy services in your area.

Alternatively, POhWER is a charity that helps people to be involved in decisions being made about their care. Call POhWER’s support centre on 0300 456 2370 for advice.

Confidentiality

We provide a confidential service to all our patients, including under 16s.

All information held by this practice is strictly confidential: from the most sensitive diagnosis, to the fact of having visited the surgery or being registered at the practice. Reception staff have particular problems when faced with members of the public who want information about family members or friends. This means that you can tell others about a visit to the surgery, but we won’t. The only reason we might have to consider passing on confidential information without your permission, would be to protect you or someone else from very serious harm. We would always try to discuss this with you first.

If you have any worries about confidentiality please feel free to ask a member of staff.

Data Choices

Your Data Matters to the NHS

Information about your health and care helps us to improve your individual care, speed up diagnosis, plan your local services and research new treatments. The NHS is committed to keeping patient information safe and always being clear about how it is used.

How your data is used

Information about your individual care such as treatment and diagnoses is collected about you whenever you use health and care services. It is also used to help us and other organisations for research and planning such as research into new treatments, deciding where to put GP clinics and planning for the number of doctors and nurses in your local hospital. It is only used in this way when there is a clear legal basis to use the information to help improve health and care for you, your family and future generations.

Wherever possible we try to use data that does not identify you, but sometimes it is necessary to use your confidential patient information.

You have a choice

You do not need to do anything if you are happy about how your information is used. If you do not want your confidential patient information to be used for research and planning, you can choose to opt out securely online or through a telephone service. You can change your mind about your choice at any time.

Will choosing this opt-out affect your care and treatment?

No, choosing to opt out will not affect how information is used to support your care and treatment. You will still be invited for screening services, such as screenings for bowel cancer.

What do you need to do?

If you are happy for your confidential patient information to be used for research and planning, you do not need to do anything.

To find out more about the benefits of data sharing, how data is protected, or to make/change your opt-out choice visit www.nhs.uk/your-nhs-data-matters

Download a copy of the patient leaflet

Failure to attend for appointments

Due to an increase in the number of wasted appointments through patients failing to attend without informing the surgary it has become necessary to implement the following policy:

If you fail to attend for 3 consecutive appointments you will be sent a warning letter. if you continue in failing to attend you may be removed from the practice list and have to find an alternative doctor.

If you cannot attend for your appointments for any reason please let us know as soon as possible, we can then offer the appointment to someone else.

Thank you for your cooperation.

GP Net Earnings

GPDfR & Opt-Out

General Practice Data for Planning and Research (GPDfPR)General Practice Data for Planning and Research (GPDfPR) – Opting out

The data held in your GP medical records are shared with other healthcare professionals for the purposes of your individual care. It is also shared with other organisations to support health and care planning and research.

General Practice Data for Planning and Research (GPDfPR) – Opting out

The way in which data from your medical record is shared is about to change.

What is GPDfPR?

On 1st July 2021, NHS Digital will collect patient data from your GP medical record for use in planning and research. This is called “General Practice Data Collection for Planning and Research” (GPDfPR). Shared data helps the NHS; for example, it has been used to find the first treatment for coronavirus and for vaccine research.

If you do not want your GP to share your identifiable patient data for purposes except for your own care, you can opt-out by registering a Type 1 Opt-out with us. This prevents your data being shared with anyone outside of the practice for purposes other than your own care.

The deadline for collecting data from GP records has been postponed to 1st September. If you wish to opt-out, please
complete ADD LINK TO FORM HERE and return it to us as soon as possible. Do you have to share my patient data?

Yes. GPDfPR is a legal requirement for practices. Completing the form above is the only way to prevent it from being collected.

What is the National Data Opt-Out?

Signing up to the National Data Opt-Out prevents clearly identifiable medical information about you from any source (GP, hospital, social care, etc.) being shared. It does not prevent it from being collected from your GP practice. To sign up to the National Data Opt-Out go to Overview – Choose if data from your health records is shared for research and planning – NHS (www.nhs.uk)

How do I opt-out for my child?

You can register a National Data Opt-Out for any child under 13 years of age. A child is able to set their own opt-out from age 13, which aligns with the minimum age at which children can give their consent to participate in digital services as set out in data protection legislation. To do this use the same National Data Opt-Out link. Alternatively, you can download this form and email or post it to the address provided.

Where can I find out more?

https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/data-collections-and-data-sets/data-collections/general-practice-data-for-planning-and-research?fbclid=IwAR3EeQQcyzyynR4qiasm355_oj525AVXPXRCbPjvOwacJmlYQn2lqoN8R1k#opting-out

Use this form below to opt-out. When complete, please post or send by email to our GP practice
Type1-Opt-out-form

Herefordshire One Record

Sharing records to improve patient care in Herefordshire

Herefordshire patients will soon benefit from an improved digital sharing system called Herefordshire One Record.

This will enable sharing of patient records between GPs and other health care professionals in the county to ensure patients get the best possible treatment when needed.

Further information and FAQs can be found at Herefordshire One record

How Belmont Medical Centre implements the NHS Constitution

Principles

The Practice:

Provides a comprehensive service, available to all irrespective of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation and has a duty to respect their human rights.
Promotes equality through the service, providing and to paying particular attention to groups or sections of society where improvements in health and life expectancy are not keeping pace with the rest of the population.
Provides access to services based on clinical need, not on an individual’s ability to pay.
Aspires to the highest standards of excellence and professionalism, providing safe and effective high-quality care focused on patient experience.
Ensures that it is effectively lead and managed and its staff receive relevant education, training and development.
Its services reflect the needs and preferences of patients, their families and carers who will be involved in and consulted on all decisions about their care and treatment.
Ensures that it works across organisational boundaries and in partnership with other organisations in the interest of patients, local communities and the wider population.
Is accountable to the public, communities and patients that it serves.
Supports staff when they raise concerns about the service by ensuring their concerns are fully investigated and that there is someone independent, outside of their team, to speak to.

Patient Rights

Patients have the right:

To receive NHS services free of charge, apart from certain limited exceptions sanctioned by Parliament.
To access NHS services and not be refused access on unreasonable grounds.
To expect the Practice to assess the health requirements of the local community and to commission and put in place the services to meet those needs as considered necessary.
In certain circumstances to go to other European Economic Area countries or Switzerland for treatment which would be available through the NHS.
Not to be unlawfully discriminated against in the provision of NHS services including on grounds of gender, race, religion or belief, sexual orientation, disability (including learning disability or mental illness) or age.
To access services within maximum waiting times, or to be offered a range of alternative providers if this is not possible.
To be treated with a professional standard of care, by appropriately qualified and experienced staff, in a properly approved or registered organisation that meets required levels of safety and quality.
To be treated with dignity and respect, in accordance with their human rights.
To accept or refuse treatment that is offered, and not to be given any physical examination or treatment unless valid consent has been given.
To be given information about their proposed treatment in advance, including any significant risks and any alternative treatments which may be available, and the risks involved in doing nothing.
To privacy and confidentiality and to expect the Practice to keep their confidential information safe and secure.
To access to their own health records.
To choose their GP practice, and to be accepted by that Practice unless there are reasonable grounds to refuse, in which case they will be informed of those reasons.
To express a preference for using a particular doctor within their GP Practice.
To make choices about their NHS care and to information to support these choices.
To be involved in discussions and decisions about their healthcare, and to be given information to enable them to do this.
To be involved, directly or through representatives, in the planning of healthcare services, the development and consideration of proposals for changes in the way those services are provided, and in decisions to be made affecting the operation of those services.
To have any complaint you make about NHS services dealt with efficiently, to have it properly investigated, know the outcome and escalate the complaint to the independent Health Service Ombudsman.
To make a claim for judicial review if they think they have been directly affected by an unlawful act or decision of an NHS body.
To compensation where they have been harmed by negligent treatment.

Patient Responsibilities

To make a significant contribution to their own, and their family’s, good health and well-being, and take some personal responsibility for it.
To treat NHS staff and other patients with respect and recognise that causing a nuisance or disturbance on NHS premises could result in prosecution.
To provide accurate information about their health, condition and status.
To keep appointments, or cancel within reasonable time.
To follow the course of treatment which they have agreed, and talk to their clinician if they find this difficult.
To participate in important public health programmes such as vaccination.
To ensure that those closest to them are aware of their wishes about organ donation.
To give feedback – both positive and negative – about the treatment and care they have received, including any adverse reactions they may have had.

Practice Staff Rights

Practice Staff have the right:

To a good working environment with flexible working opportunities, consistent with the needs of patients and with the way that people live their lives;
To have a fair pay and contract framework;
To be involved and represented in the workplace;
To have healthy and safe working conditions and an environment free from harassment, bullying or violence;
To be treated fairly, equally and free from discrimination; and
To raise an internal grievance and if necessary seek redress, where it is felt that a right has not been upheld;
To raise any concern with their employer, whether it is about safety, malpractice or other risk, in the public interest, without suffering any detriment.

NHS Pledge to Staff Members

The NHS Commits:

To provide all staff with clear roles and responsibilities and rewarding jobs for teams and individuals that make a difference to patients, their families and carers and communities;
To provide all staff with personal development, access to appropriate training for their jobs and line management support to succeed;
To provide support and opportunities for staff to maintain their health, well-being and safety;
To engage staff in decisions that affect them and the services they provide, individually, through representative organisations and through local partnership working arrangements. All staff will be empowered to put forward ways to deliver better and safer services for patients and their families;
To support all staff in raising concerns at the earliest reasonable opportunity about safety, malpractice or wrongdoing at work, responding to and, where necessary, investigating the concerns raised and acting consistently with the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998.

Practice Staff Responsibilities

Practice Staff have the duty:

To accept professional accountability and maintain the standards of professional practice as set by the appropriate regulatory body applicable to their profession or role.
To take reasonable care of health and safety at work for themselves, their team and others, and to co-operate with employers to ensure compliance with health and safety requirements.
To act in accordance with the express and implied terms of their contract of employment.
Not to discriminate against patients or staff and to adhere to equal opportunities and equality and human rights legislation.
To protect the confidentiality of personal information that they hold unless to do so would put anyone at risk of significant harm.
To be honest and truthful in applying for a job and in carrying out that job.
To play their part in ensuring the success of the NHS and delivering high-quality care by:

Ø Maintaining the highest standards of care and service, taking responsibility not only for the care they personally provide, but also for their wider contribution to the aims of their team and the NHS as a whole;

Ø Taking up training and development opportunities provided over and above those legally required of their particular post;

Ø Actively taking part in sustainably improving services by working in partnership with patients, the public and communities;

Ø Raising any genuine concern they may have about a risk, malpractice or wrongdoing at work (such as a risk to patient safety, fraud or breaches of patient confidentiality), which may affect patients, the public, other staff or the Practice itself, at the earliest reasonable opportunity;

Ø Being open with patients, their families, carers or representatives, including if anything goes wrong; welcoming and listening to feedback and addressing concerns promptly and in a spirit of co-operation. Staff should contribute to a climate where the truth can be heard and the reporting of, and learning from, errors is encouraged;

Ø Viewing the services they provide from the standpoint of a patient, and involve patients, their families and carers in the services they provide, working with them, their communities and other organisations, and making it clear who is responsible for their care.

Source:

The NHS Constitution = 8 March 2012:

http://www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/groups/dh_digitalassets/@dh/@en/documents/digitalasset/dh_132958.pdf

Named Accountable GP for All Patients

Privacy Notices

Rights and Responsibilities

The care of your health is a partnership between yourself and the Primary Health Care Team. The success of the partnership depends on an understanding of each others needs and co-operation between us.

Our responsibility to you:

You will be greeted courteously.
You have right to confidentiality.
We will respect our patients’ privacy and confidentiality at all times.
You have a right to see your medical records subject to limitations of the law.
You will receive attention the same day if your problem is urgent.
You will be seen by your preferred doctor whenever possible.
You will be informed if there will be a delay for your appointment.
You will be referred to a consultant when your doctor thinks it necessary.
You will be given the result of any test as it becomes available.
Your repeat prescription will be ready for collection within 48 hours (2 working days) of your request.
Your suggestions and comments about the services offered will be considered sympathetically and any complaint dealt with quickly.

Your responsibility to us:

Please treat our staff in courteous manner, they are here to help and remember they are working under doctors’ orders.
Violent or abusive behaviour will not be tolerated and could lead to you being removed from the practice list.
Do not ask for information about anyone other than yourself.
Tell us of any change of name or address so that records are accurate. If you are waiting to be seen at the hospital please let them know too.
Only request an urgent appointment if appropriate.
Home visits should only be requested if you are really too ill to attend surgery, and night visits should be for emergencies only.
Please cancel your appointment if you are unable to attend. Someone else could use your appointment.
Please be punctual, but be prepared to wait if your own consultation is delayed by unexpected circumstances.
Please allow sufficient time for your consultant’s letter or the result of any tests to reach us.
Use the tear off slip to order your repeat prescriptions whenever possible.
Please attend for review when asked, before your next prescription is due.
Do let us know whenever you feel we have not met our responsibility to you. We would, of course, be pleased to hear when you feel praise is due as well.

Shared Care Record – Privacy Policy Dec 2021

Who we are

The Herefordshire & Worcestershire Shared Care Record allows health and social care professionals to view the most up-to-date information about you so they can give you better, safer care.

Partner health and social care organisations will make the information they hold on you available for professionals to view through the Shared Care Record. These organisations provide health and social care services in the following areas:

Birmingham and Solihull
Coventry and Warwickshire
Herefordshire and Worcestershire.

They include local GP practices, hospitals, NHS 111, community, mental health, ambulance and social care services.

The health and social care partners involved follow the law on keeping your information confidential. The laws they must abide by are the Data Protection Act 2018 and the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR).

Each is also registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) as a data controller – an organisation that decides what information is collected and why, and how it is handled. The partners will be joint data controllers for any personal, or special categories of personal information they handle.

This privacy notice explains how your personal information will be used, what for, who will be able to see it and why.

What will your personal information be used for?

Allowing health and social care professionals involved in your care to view your records helps them understand your needs and make the best decisions with you, and for you.

It means:

you won’t have to repeat your details every time you need care
clinicians will be able to see what medications you’re taking and if you have any allergies, making your treatment safer
they’ll also be able to make better decisions about your care by knowing your recent history – things such as tests, scans, results and prescriptions
you won’t have to explain your social care support to health professionals
you’ll get more efficient treatment because clinicians won’t have to wait for other organisations to forward your information by letter or phone
your care will be more joined up wherever you need it in Birmingham and

Solihull, Coventry and Warwickshire or Herefordshire and Worcestershire.

What information will health and social care professionals be able to see?

The information that will be available for professionals at our partners to view through the Shared Care Record is shown below. We have split this between

‘healthcare’ and ‘social care’ to show the kind of information each partner organisation will be able to look at.

Healthcare

Information such as your name, address, date of birth and NHS number
People to contact in an emergency
Social care assessment information
Care providers and the services you’ve used
Any safeguarding information designed to protect you
Your legal status for being in the UK
Any conditions or illnesses you’ve been diagnosed as having
Any operations you’ve had
Your medication
Any alerts or risks relevant to your care
Your medical and maternity history
Any birth and neonatal details
Records of care you’ve had as an inpatient or outpatient
Your appointments
Documents such as discharge summaries, clinical letters, care plans, risk assessments and referrals
Results of investigations, scans and laboratory tests
Reports such as those from radiology scans or X-rays
Examinations, for instance to check your blood pressure
Trials or studies you might be part of
If you’ve been sectioned under the Mental Health Act
Details of supportive care, such as your end-of-life preferences

Social care

Information such as your name, address, date of birth and NHS number
People to contact in an emergency
Social care assessment information
Care providers and the services you’ve used
Any safeguarding information designed to protect you
Your legal status for being in the UK
Any conditions or illnesses you’ve been diagnosed as having
A summary of the care you’ve had from a service, such as a hospital, when your care with that service is finished
Details of supportive care, such as your end-of-life preferences
Your assessment information such as care plans, risk assessments, date of last assessments/review/visit, housing status, immigration status

Our lawful basis for processing your information

Each partner organisation is responsible for the information they view, or make available to view, through the Shared Care Record. This includes personal records and special category information they hold in their records.

All the partners that can view your information must follow the law to make sure they always handle your personal information in a lawful way. What they have to do depends on the care or service you need.

Our lawful bases are:

NHS trusts/local authorities/primary care (GPs)/clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) (to the extent that CCGs have access to shared personal data to provide integrated care):

Provision of health/social care (Art 6(1) (e) UK GDPR, 9(2)(h) UK GDPR, in combination with Section 10 (1)(c) and any relevant condition in Schedule 1, Part 1 of the DPA 2018.

NHS trusts/primary care (GPs):

Vital interests (situation of ‘life or death’) (Art 6(1)(d) and 9(2) (c) UK GDPR.

NHS trusts/local authorities/primary care (GPs)/clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) (to the extent that CCGs have access to shared personal data to provide integrated care):

Safeguarding of vulnerable adults and children (Art 6(1) (c), 9(2) (g) UK GDPR in combination with Section 10(3) and Schedule 1, Part 2, condition 18 of the DPA 2018.

Who do we allow to view your personal information?

Here’s a full list of all our partners who can view your information through the Shared Care Record when needed for your care.

Our Partner Organisations

How long do we keep your records?

Each partner organisation keeps its own record of the care you’ve received from it in line with ‘The Records Management Code of Practice for Health and Social Care’ guidance. None of your personal information (including your healthcare information) is kept in the Shared Care Record – it is only made available for health or social care professionals to view. To fulfil your ‘right to object’ (please see the next section), the Shared Care Record will keep limited information about you, such as your name,

date of birth and NHS number. This will ensure that, where you have objected, no health or care professional will be able to view your records through the Shared Care

Record. They will see only the electronic information recorded on their own organisation’s system for the care you have received there.

Your rights

You have the right to:

1. Object to your information being available for health and social care professionals to view through the Shared Care Record.
2. Complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office if you are unhappy with the way we are handling your information. See below for details of how to do thi

Contact your relevant health or care provider to:

1. ask to see the personal information they hold about you
2. ask them to change information they hold about you if it is wrong.

If you would like to object to your records being made available for professionals to view through the Shared Care Record, you can find out how to do so on our ‘right to object’ page: https://herefordshireandworcestershireccg.nhs.uk/health-services/shared-care-record/right-to-object

If you are aged 16 or above, we will process your ‘right to object’ form by carrying out our normal checks on the details you have given us.

From the age of 13 to 16, we will consider your right to object if your form has been signed on your behalf by someone with parental responsibility.

If it has not, we will ask a recognised health or care professional if they consider you to be competent to make such a decision.

If you are under the age of 13, we will only consider your right to object if your form has been signed on your behalf by someone with parental responsibility.

Complaints

You have the right to complain if you are unhappy with the way your information is handled, or disagree with your healthcare provider’s decision about your information. In these circumstances you can contact the healthcare provider and ask them to look again at the decision.

If you are not happy with any decision your healthcare provider makes, you can contact the Information Commissioner’s Office at:

Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House,
Water Lane,
Wilmslow,
Cheshire,
SK9 5AF

Telephone: 0303 123 1113 (local rate)
Telephone: 01625 545 745 (national rate)
Fax: 01625 524 510

Email: [email protected]

Summary Care Record – Statement of Intent

It is important that your medical record is available when and where you need it. You may feel, especially if you have an extensive medical history, that it is important for some of your medical information to be available if, for example, you were on holiday away from the practice area and taken ill. Having your Summary Care Record (SCR) available will help anyone treating you without your full medical record. They will have access to information about any medication you may be taking and any drugs that you have a recorded allergy or sensitivity to. The system in use at Belmont Medical Centre means that your SCR is automatically updated, on at least a daily basis, to ensure that your information is as up to date as it can be. Of course, if you do not want your medical records available in this way, please contact us so that we can update your record to this effect. We will add a code that excludes your records being shared via SCR.

Violent or Abusive Behaviour – Zero Tolerance Statement

Our staff come to work to care for others, and it is important for all members of the public and our staff to be treated with respect.

We aim to treat our patients courteously at all times and expect our patients to treat our staff in a similarly respectful way. We take seriously any threatening, abusive or violent behaviour against any of our staff or patients.

If a patient is violent or abusive, they will be asked to stop. If they persist, we may exercise our right to take action to have them removed, immediately if necessary, from our list of patients.

In line with the rest of the NHS, and to ensure this is fully observed we have a Zero Tolerance policy, whereby aggressive or violent behaviour towards our staff will not be tolerated under any circumstances.

Anyone giving verbal abuse to members of staff will be sent a letter from the Practice stating that this behaviour will not be tolerated and may result in removal from the Practice Patient list. There will be no appeal process.

Any incident of threatening, abusive or violent behaviour may be reported to the local Police Service as part of the Zero Tolerance campaign.

We hope that you will understand an welcome this policy which is in place for the best interests of our hard working staff as all the patients that we serve.

Your medical records when leaving the practice (GP2GP)

It is very important that you are registered with a doctor near to where you live. We encourage patients to do this as soon as possible if they move out of the practice area. Once you have registered with a new GP, your medical records will be forwarded on to them via NHS England.

NHS England requires all practices to use electronic transfer of patient records (GP2GP) between practices when a patient registers or de-registers from our Practice or have published plans in place to achieve this by 31 ^st of March 2015.

Belmont Medical Centre already uses GP2GP to transfer patient records electronically, unless there is an issue with the receiving practice’s computer system that does not allow the transfer. This means that your electronic medical record will be available to your new GP as soon as they register you at the practice.

Welcome to Belmont Medical Centre

Practice Policies