Confidentiality

Patients have a right to expect that information about them will be held in confidence by their doctors. Confidentiality is central to trust.

However, there are circumstances when this information may be disclosed. In situations when disclosure is necessary, we apply the following rules:

• We seek patient’s consent to disclosure
• We anonymise data where unidentifiable data will serve the purpose
• We keep disclosures to the minimum necessary

Information about patients is requested for a wide variety of purposes including education, research, public health surveillance, clinical audit, administration and planning. In ALL of these circumstances, the above three rules apply.

Within the practice the following people can access your information: doctors, nurses, practice manager, heath visitors, midwife, administration staff, medicines management team, physiotherapists, counsellors, medical students and financial auditor from the Health Authority.

Each of these people has a legal duty to keep information about you confidential.

You have a right of access to your health records.

You can object to information being shared with others providing care for you except where disclosure would be likely to cause serious harm to the physical or mental health of yourself or any other person.

The Care Record Guarantee

Freedom of Information

The ICO has published a new Model Publication Scheme that all public authorities are required to adopt by 1st January 2009.

Model Publication Scheme - further information

Comments & Complaints

If you have a complaint or concern about the service that you have received from your Doctors or any of the staff working in this Practice, please let us know. We operate a Practice Complaints Procedure as part of an NHS system for dealing with complaints.

Our complaints system meets national criteria. We hope that most problems can be sorted out easily and quickly, often at the time they arise and with the person concerned. If your problem cannot be sorted out in this way and you wish to make a complaint, we would like you to let us know as soon as possible – ideally, within a matter of days, because this will enable us to establish what happened more easily.

Complaints should be addressed to the Practice Manager or any of the Doctors. Alternatively, you may ask for an appointment with the Practice Manager in order to discuss your concerns. He will explain the complaint procedure to you and will make sure that your concerns are dealt with promptly. We aim to acknowledge your complaint within three working days after the day on which the complaint is received and aim to have looked into your complaint within ten working days after the day on which the complaint is received.

Please note that we keep strictly to the rules of medical confidentiality. If you are complaining on behalf of someone else, we have to know that you have his or her permission to do so. A note signed by the person concerned will be needed, unless they are incapable (because of illness) of providing this.

We will be very happy to hear from you, about any matter you think would help us to continue providing high quality care.

Please address any comments to:

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The Health Service Ombudsman

The Health Service Ombudsman has published a booklet that describes the ‘six principles for remedy’ in relation to complaints handling and involves:

1. Getting it right
2. Being customer focused
3. Being open and accountable
4. Acting fairly and proportionately
5. Putting things right
6. Seeking continuous improvements

If you remain unhappy after everything has been done to try to resolve your concern or complaint you have the right to approach the Ombudsman.
Tel: 0345 015 4033
Email: phso.enquiries@ombudsman.org.uk
Write: Millbank Tower, Millbank, London SW1P 4QP.

Help us to help you

• The Doctors have instructed the receptionists to ask certain questions so they may deal with your request in accordance with Doctors’ practice policies.
• Staff will maintain your right to privacy and not discuss your illness with other staff or Doctors within hearing distance of other people. If you wish to speak privately with a receptionist, please do ask. There is a privacy area provided.
• If you cannot keep an appointment, please let us know as soon as possible - this may enable someone else to be seen.
• Please remember that your appointment is for 10 minutes. Each problem you present may take the whole appointment to address adequately. Do not expect your doctor to deal with multiple complaints because this may result in other patients waiting longer, or insufficient time spent on each problem.
• Please avoid calling the Practice during the peak morning period (8.00 am – 11.00 am) for non-urgent matters.
• Please do not expect a prescription every time you visit the surgery. Good advice is often the best treatment.

ALL MEMBERS OF THE APPLETREE MEDICAL PRACTICE PRIMARY CARE TEAM ARE DEDICATED TO A QUALITY POLICY TO ACHIEVE HEALTH SERVICES WHICH MEET THE PATIENTS' REQUIREMENTS.

Practice Leaflet:

All new patients will receive a copy of our practice leaflet and copies will be available at the reception desk.

Surgery Premises:

Our surgery building will be welcoming, easy for patients to find their way around and appropriate to the needs of users, including the disabled.

Patients' rights to General Medical Services:

Patients have the rights to:

• be registered with a General Practitioner
• a health check on request on joining the practice
• receive appropriate drugs and medicines
• be referred for specialist or second opinion if they and the GP agrees
• view their medical records, subject to the Acts and to know that those working for the NHS are under legal obligation to keep the contents confidential.

Changes to Procedures:

When changes are introduced to practice procedures that affect patients, we will ensure that these are clearly explained, by means of the web site, newsletter; waiting room notice board or individual leaflets, giving as much notice as practicable.

Repeat Prescriptions:

The number of hours from requesting a prescription to availability for collection by the patient is 48 hours or less (excluding weekends and bank/local holidays)

Referrals:

• Urgent referrals to other health and social care agencies will be made within one working day of the patient consultation. Where requested, our GPs will refer you to a private health provider.
• We will normally process non-urgent referrals within ten working days of the patient consultation or the doctor's decision to refer.

Test Results:

When a doctor or nurse arranges for a test to be taken, the patient will be advised how to obtain the result. (Results are normally available within 5 to 7 working days. Patients can ring after 11.00pm on the seventh day to obtain results.)

Transfer of Medical Records:

The Practice will endeavour to dispatch any medical record required by the Health Authority within seven working days and same day if the request is urgent.

Privacy and Confidentiality:

We will respect our patients' privacy, dignity and confidentiality at all times.

Appointments:

With a Doctor :     For routine consultations we will endeavour to offer patients a ten minute appointment within ten working days of the request.    For medically urgent requests, we will offer an appointment on the same day.

With a Practice Nurse :     For routine appointments we will offer an appointment within five working days.

Waiting Times:

• Surgeries will normally start on time.
• We expect patients to be seen within thirty minutes of their appointment time, and in the event of a delay we will offer an explanation.
• When a doctor is called away on an emergency we will inform the patients and give them an opportunity to book an alternative appointment, or if preferred, to be seen by another doctor.

Home Visits:

We cannot always guarantee a specific doctor will visit you as this depends on availability and other factors. The decision to home visit will be at the doctors’ discretion and based on clinical need.

Out of Hours Emergencies:

Outside of surgery opening hours our telephone lines are re-directed to the out-of-hours service.

With these rights come responsibilities and for the patients this means:

• Courtesy to the staff at all times - remember they are working under doctors' orders. Verbal and physical abuse will not be tolerated.
• Responding in a positive way to questions asked by the reception staff.
• To attend appointments on time or give the practice adequate notice that they wish to cancel.   Someone else could use your appointment!
• An appointment is for ONE person only - where another member of the family needs to be seen or discussed, another appointment should be made.
• An appointment is  for ONE problem only – where more than one problem exists separate appointments should be made
• Patients should make every effort when consulting the surgery to make best use of nursing and medical time - home visits should be medically justifiable and not requested for social convenience.
• When asked to give 48 hours notice for repeat prescriptions, please give us this time as it is to allow for accurate prescribing.

Requests for visits that same day should be made before 10.30am