How We Use Your Information

We will share relevant information from your medical record with other health or social care staff or organisations when they provide you with care. For example, your GP will share information when they refer you to a specialist in a hospital. Or your GP will send details about your prescription to your chosen pharmacy.

This practice keeps medical records confidential and complies with the General Data Protection Regulation.

We hold your medical record so that we can provide you with safe care and treatment.

We will also use your information so that this practice can check and review the quality of the care we provide. This helps us to improve our services to you.

Healthcare staff working in A&E and out of hours care will also have access to your information. For example, it is important that staff who are treating you in an emergency know if you have any allergic reactions. This will involve the use of your Summary Care Record and during the COVID-19 pandemic (until end of September 2020) additional access governed by  Enhanced Data Sharing including Medical Intraoperability Gateway (with A&E/ambulance service and out of hours), GP Connect (with other GP practices) and SystmOne Sharing (with other SystmOne organisations such as Acute GP service, St. Lukes Hospice and District Nursing Team).  All access is fully auditable and only accessible by NHS workers with valid smartcards.

You have the right to object to information being shared for your own care through either phoning the practice or downloading and dissenting on the appropriate consent form for either the Summary Care Record or Enhanced Data Sharing. You also have the right to have any mistakes or errors corrected. For full core summary record dissent you will also need to complete an Summary Care Record Opt Out form.

How We Use Your Information for Screening Purposes

  • The NHS provides national screening programmes so that certain diseases can be detected at an early stage.
  • These screening programmes include bowel cancer, breast cancer, cervical cancer, aortic aneurysms and a diabetic eye screening service.
  • The law allows us to share your contact information with Public Health England so that you can be invited to the relevant screening programme.
  • More information can be found at www.gov.uk/topic/population-screening-programmes or speak to the practice.

We are required by law to provide you with the following information about how we handle your information in relation to our legal obligations to share data.

Data Controller Contact Details

St Neots Surgery
01752 561305

Data Protection Officer Contact Details

Bex Lovewell
Data Protection Officer
Delt Shared Services Ltd.
BUILDING 2 – DELT
Derriford Business Park
Plymouth
PL6 5QZ

01752 580321 / 07870 997267

Purpose of the processing

  • The NHS provides several national health screening programmes to detect diseases or conditions early such as cervical and breast cancer, aortic aneurysm and diabetes.
  • The information is shared so that the correct people are invited for screening. This means those who are most at risk can be offered treatment.

Lawful basis for processing

The following sections of the GDPR allow us to contact patients for screening.

Article 6(1)(e) – ‘processing is necessary…in the exercise of official authority vested in the controller…’’

Article 9(2)(h) – ‘processing is necessary for the purpose of preventative…medicine…the provision of health or social care or treatment or the management of health or social care systems and services…’

Recipient or Categories of Recipients of the Processed Data

The data will be shared with:

  • Diabetic Retinal Screening
  • Health Intelligence
  • Public Health

Rights to Object

For national screening programmes: you can opt so that you no longer receive an invitation to a screening programme.See www.gov.uk/government/publications/opting-out-of-the-nhs-population-screening-programmes or speak to your practice.

Right to Access and Correct

  • You have the right to access your medical record and have any errors or mistakes corrected. Please speak to a member of staff or look at our ‘Access to Medical Records’ policy on the practice website.
  • We are not aware of any circumstances in which you will have the right to delete correct information from your medical record; although you are free to obtain your own legal advice if you believe there is no lawful purpose for which we hold the information and contact us if you hold a different view.

Retention Period

GP medical records will be kept in line with the law and national guidance.
Information on how long records can be kept can be found at: www.digital.nhs.uk/article/1202/Records-Management-Code-of-Practice-for-Health-and-Social-Care-2016 or speak to the practice.

Right to Complain

You have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office. If you wish to complain follow this link www.ico.org.uk/global/contact-us or call the helpline 0303 123 1113.

Data we get from other organisations We receive information about your health from other organisations who are involved in providing you with health and social care. For example, if you go to hospital for treatment or an operation the hospital will send us a letter to let us know what happens. This means your GP medical record is kept up-to date when you receive care from other parts of the health service.