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.

Please note that calls may be monitored or recorded for quality control, staff training, and safety purposes.

Freedom of Information

Information about the General Practioners and the practice required for disclosure under this act can be made available to the public. All requests for such information should be made to the practice manager.

Access to Records

In accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998 and Access to Health Records Act, patients may request to see their medical records. Such requests should be made through the practice manager and may be subject to an administration charge. No information will be released without the patient consent unless we are legally obliged to do so.

Complaints

We make every effort to give the best service possible to everyone who attends our practice.

However, we are aware that things can go wrong resulting in a patient feeling that they have a genuine cause for complaint. If this is so, we would wish for the matter to be settled as quickly, and as amicably, as possible.

To pursue a complaint please contact the practice manager who will deal with your concerns appropriately. Further written information is available regarding the complaints procedure from reception.

What happens if I prefer to complain directly to the commissioning organisation?

If your complaint is about primary care services such as GPs, dentists, opticians or pharmacy services, you should contact NHS Cheshire and Merseyside.   

• Telephone: 0800 132 996
• E-mail: enquiries@cheshireandmerseyside.nhs.uk
• Writing to us at:  Patient Experience Team, No 1 Lakeside, 920 Centre Park Square, Warrington, WA11QY.

Note: changes on 1 July 2023  

• From 1 July 2023 the way members of the public make a complaint about primary care services to the commissioner is changing. Rather than contacting NHS England, complaints will be made to directly to NHS Cheshire and Merseyside.
• Members of the public will still be able to make a complaint to the provider. This is NOT changing. 
• Members of the public with ongoing complaints received on/after 1 July 2022 will receive a letter from NHS England informing them that NHS Cheshire and Merseyside will take responsibility for the handling of their complaint.
• Members of the public with any ongoing complaints received before 1 July 2022 will receive a letter from NHS England informing them that their complaint will be retained by NHS England. 
• Find out more about how to feedback or make a complaint about an NHS service

Violence Policy

The NHS operate a zero tolerance policy with regard to violence and abuse and the practice has the right to remove violent patients from the list with immediate effect in order to safeguard practice staff, patients and other persons. Violence in this context includes actual or threatened physical violence or verbal abuse which leads to fear for a person’s safety. In this situation we will notify the patient in writing of their removal from the list and record in the patient’s medical records the fact of the removal and the circumstances leading to it.