Patients Rights
General Care
- We will treat you with courtesy, respect and sensitivity at all times.
- Will endeavour to maintain the highest standards of medical practice at all times. The Doctors and Health professionals concerned will undertake to maintain these standards through continuing Audit of their care and professional learning.
- We will keep the consultation and your computer and written records confidential.
- We will provide you with emergency care promptly when you need it.
- We will endeavour to offer all patients access to a doctor within two working days for medical problems of any kind - though it will not always be possible to offer an appointment with the doctor of your choice.
- We will refer you for appropriate investigations, consultant opinions and care at a hospital or clinic when both you and the doctor treating you agree it is necessary and would be of benefit.
- We will give you a full and prompt reply to any complaints you make about the service we provide and try and change practices if this would improve care or standards to others.
Rights to see medical records
Patients wishing to view their records can apply in writing or verbally. Once the GP agrees the request the surgery will contact you to collect a copy of your records. When presenting at the surgery for this purpose you will be asked to produce some identification to enable us to maintain your right to confidentiality. There is no charge for these requests. Any requests for information you have already had previously will be chargeable.
Confidentiality
You can be confident that any thing that you discuss with any member of this practice whether it be a doctor, nurse, receptionist or admin personnel will stay confidential. Even if you are under 16 nothing will be said to anyone including parents, other family members, care workers or tutors, without your permission. The only reason why we might have to consider passing on confidential information without your permission, would be to protect you or someone else from serious harm. We would always try to discuss this with you first.
If you are being treated elsewhere for example at a hospital or the Acorn Centre, it is best if you allow your doctor or nurse to inform the practice of any treatment you are receiving.
If you have any worries about confidentiality please feel free to ask a member of staff.
Patients Responsibilities
The relationship between the surgery and our patients works best when patients are happy with the service we provide. To that end, we endeavour to always put the patient first and to maintain the highest standards. However, we also expect our patients to contribute to the good running of the practice and to their own good health, and therefore:
- We ask all patients to be civil and polite at all times. There is no excuse for verbal or physical abuse towards doctors or their staff and it will not be accepted.
- If you have a problem or complaint do not take it out on a member of staff, they are only trying to do their best for you. Instead if you remain dissatisfied - ask to speak with the Practice Manger Robert Bury or the Assistant Manager should he not be available.
- Please keep your appointment. If you are unable to keep an appointment or the condition has improved, then let us know as soon as possible so that someone else can have your appointment.
- If you have asked the doctor to contact you - please leave a telephone number where you can be contacted for the rest of the day.
- If you move house, please inform the reception staff of your new address and telephone when you are in the surgery. This is of particular importance if you have been referred to a hospital or we need to contact you urgently.
- If your new address is outside the practice boundary it may be advisable to register closer to home, especially should you have complex health requirements with community input.
- If you are referred for a hospital outpatient appointment - please keep it or inform the hospital NOT the surgery as soon as possible. The NHS can ill afford to have appointments unused. It is also very important to tell the hospital of your new address if you are on a waiting list for an operation.
- If you have a query regarding your hospital care please contact the consultant's secretary who will be happy to help you. Results of tests undertaken by your consultant are not routinely reported to the surgery.
Digitisation of Medical Records
Lancashire and South Cumbria has been chosen by NHS England to be a national pilot for the digitisation of Medical Records. Scanning these paper based records and making them digital will enable better utilisation of space, creating more clinical space, staff areas, multi team space and video hubs, removing the need for some practices to build extensions. In addition it will also make your record more easily and speedily accessible to clinical staff within your practice.
Your complete GP medical record will be digital and stored in a secure cloud based clinical system (only accessible by your GP practice) with the paper based records being securely destroyed following BS EN 15713:2009 Secure destruction of confidential material. Your GP will still be able to access your records easily within this system. The scanning and destruction of the paper records will follow strict data protection guidelines adhered to by the NHS. As with paper based records, digital records are stored for the durations specified in the Records Management Codes of Practice for Health and Social Care. For GP patient records, this states that they may be destroyed 10 years after the patient’s death if they are no longer needed.
If you wish to discuss the scheme, please inform the Practice direct either by letter to Blackburn Road Medical Practice, 257 Blackburn Road, Accrington BB5 0AL or email blackburnroad.medicalpractice@nhs.net