Confidentiality

The practice complies with Data Protection and Access to Medical Records legislation. Identifiable information about you will be shared with others in the following circumstances:

• To provide further medical treatment for you e.g. from district nurses and hospital services.
• To help you get other services e.g. from the social work department. This requires your consent.
• When we have a duty to others e.g. in child protection cases anonymised patient information will also be used at local and national level to help the Health Board and Government plan services e.g. for diabetic care.

If you do not wish anonymous information about you to be used in such a way, please let us know.

Reception and administration staff require access to your medical records in order to do their jobs. These members of staff are bound by the same rules of confidentiality as the medical staff.

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

Our aim is to deal with most complaints as promptly as possible within 24 hours. If however this is not possible and your complaint requires more investigation you can complete a form, which is available at reception, or write a letter. These complaints should be addressed to the Practice Manager who will thoroughly investigate.

A letter of acknowledgement will be sent to the complainant within 3 days and an offer a meeting will be made. The practice will need to Identify the complainants preferred outcomes and the complainant would be offered an assessment of how realistic this is. An action plan will be agreed with timescales, including a review date.

The complaint will be investigated and a reply will be made to complainant as agreed in the plan and an offer of a meeting if appropriate. The practice will establish if the complainant is satisfied, if not the matter can be taken to the ombudsman for an independent review and will be given a leaflet on how to do this .

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.

Staff Training

This Practice is not a GP training Practice but we participate in Protected Learning Time training sessions, which means the Surgery is closed for one afternoon a month. 

When the Surgery is closed for training you should contact NENEDOC (Telephone number above) in an emergency.