Protecting Privacy

Creating a safe environment for your personal medical information

Your medical record is a life-long history of your consultations, illnesses, tests, prescriptions and other treatments. This information is extremely important for your care. Your record is also a description of your relationship with health care staff, doctors, nurses and others, over the years. This relationship is based on mutual trust and confidence and we will do everything we can to protect that trust.

Part 1
What information do we share and why?
Who has access?

Part 2
What else happens to the information?

Part 3
Managing the data

Part 4
More about the Electronic Health Record (EHR)

The Future
As part of the government's modernisation of the NHS service, different communities throughout the country are trying out new ways of providing better healthcare. It will involve a continual development of a record of all visits to your GP and hospital. If this scheme works it will be made available throughout the UK.

If you would like further information about the EHR you can visit The Information Authority's website at www.nhsia.nhs.uk

Access to medical records
Requests for access to your personal information should be in writing to your GP, or the Health Records Office if applying to a hospital. The organisation must respond to your request within 40 days and a charge may be made for this. The NHS has a duty to keep medical records up to date and accurate. If you feel anything has been added to the record that is factually incorrect, you have the right to apply to have it amended or deleted in accordance with the guidance in the Act.

Can any of my records be withheld?
Yes, any information contained in your records, which is likely to cause harm to your mental or physical state or that of other people may be withheld. However, a senior clinician will always make this decision. Also, any third party information contained in your record would not be revealed without the consent of those involved.

For further information about accessing your personal information, see the leaflet 'Using the law to protect your information' published by the Information Commissioner, telephone 01625 545700 or visit their website at: www.dataprotection.gov.uk

This information has been produced by Central and North Liverpool NHS Primary Care Trusts. Each of these organisations has a Caldicott Guardian, who is responsible for agreeing and reviewing protocols for governing the disclosure of personal information across organisational boundaries.