We communicate with our patients by telephone, text, email and by letter. We also communicate using secure online services such as Engage Consult.

If we need to contact you by telephone we will ask for you by name on the contact number you have provided.  If another person answers the telephone we will not disclose that we are calling from the practice unless you have specifically authorised us to do so.

From time to time our patients or their families may find this annoying.  We apologise if this causes inconvenience for you at home.  However, it is necessary as some people may not wish others in their household to know that they are currently receiving treatment from a doctor or nurse. At times, we too find the situation frustrating but must adhere to these procedures because of our duty of confidentiality.

If you would like to nominate someone to be able to discuss your medical records with us, please complete the form below and bring into the practice. Releasing medical information to 3rd party form

We often send text reminders of appointments to patients who have provided us with a mobile telephone number.

For patients who have expressly advised us that they are happy to receive text messages from us, we may also send other appropriate messages, for example to tell you that a special prescription you have ordered is ready for collection.

If you receive text messages from us, but decide that you do not wish to do so in future, please do not hesitate to let us know.  Please also tell us if you change your mobile phone number.

We do not currently communicate with our patients by email.  We do have an email address, [email protected], to which you may send suggestions and comments, but this should not be used for any communication about your health.

We use DOCMAIL, a secure mailing service, for sending out some information letters when we need to contact large numbers of patients.

We are confident this system provides a secure and confidential method of sending information to our patients and adheres to NHS Confidentiality Guidelines.

However, if you do not wish to receive letters sent by this system, please advise us.

“Our aim is to provide the highest level of care for all our patients. We will always be willing to hear if there is any way that you think that we can improve the service we provide.

Making a complaint
If you have any complaints or concerns about the service that you have received from the doctors or staff working for this practice, please let us know.

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 or at most a few weeks – because this will enable us to establish what happened more easily.

If it is not possible to do that, please let us have details of your complaint:
Within 12 months of the incident that caused the problem; or
Within 12 months of discovering that you have a problem, provided that is within 12 months of the incident.

Our Management Team will be happy to investigate any complaint. They will explain the procedure to you and make sure that your concerns are dealt with promptly. You can make your complaint:

• In person or by telephone – ask to speak to a member of the management team.
• In writing – some complaints may be easier to explain in writing – please give as much information as can, then send your complaint to the practice for the attention of the management team as soon as possible.

What we shall do
Our complaints procedure is designed to make sure that we settle any complaints as quickly as possible. We shall acknowledge your complaint within 3 working days and in negotiation with you agree a timescale for providing a response to you. We shall then offer you an explanation, or a meeting with the people involved.

When we investigate your complaint, we shall aim to:

• find out what happened and what went wrong.
• make it possible for you to discuss the problem with those concerned, if you would like this.
• make sure you receive an apology, where appropriate
• identify what we can do to make sure the problem doesn’t happen again. At the end of the investigation your complaint will be discussed with you in detail, either in person or in writing.

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

What you can do next
We hope that, if you have a problem, you will use our practice complaints procedure. We believe that this will give us the best chance of putting right whatever has gone wrong and the opportunity to improve our practice. However, If for any reason you do not want to speak to a member of our staff, then you can request that the local Integrated Care Board (ICB) investigates your complaint. They will contact us on your behalf:

Corporate Affairs Team

Leicester, Leicestershire ICB

Room G30, Pen Lloyd Building

County Hall

Glenfield

LE3 8TB

0116 295 7572

[email protected]

If you remain dissatisfied with the responses to your complaint, you have the right to ask the Ombudsman to review your case.

The Parliamentary & Health Service Ombudsman

Millbank Tower
Millbank
London
SW1P 4QP

Telephone: 0345 015 4033

Website: www.ombudsman.org.uk

Help us get it right!

We constantly try to improve the service we offer. Please let us know when you think we have done something well or if you have any suggestions as to how we can do something better.

The Wycliffe Medical Practice
Lutterworth Medical Centre
Gilmorton Road
Lutterworth
Leicestershire
LE17 4EB

Telephone 01455 553531

Partners:
Dr G S Johnson, Dr S Maity, Dr C E Kendall, Dr B Shapiro

Practice Manager: Katherine Churcher

Liaison Officer: Sharon Johnston “

The Freedom of Information (FOI) Act was passed on 30 November 2000. It gives a general right of access to all types of recorded information held by public authorities, with full access granted in January 2005. The Act sets out exemptions to that right and places certain obligations on public authorities. FOI replaced the Open Government Code of Practice, which has been in operation since 1994.

Data Protection and FOI – how do the two interact?
The Data Protection Act 1998 came into force on 1 March 2000. It provides living individuals with a right of access to personal information held about them. The right applies to all information held in computerised form and also to non-computerised information held in filing systems structured so that specific information about particular individuals can retrieved readily.

Individuals already have the right to access information about themselves (personal data), which is held on computer and in some paper files under the Data Protection Act 1998.

The right also applies to those archives that meet these criteria. However, the right is subject to exemptions, which will affect whether information is provided. Requests will be dealt with on a case by case basis.

The Freedom of Information Act and the Data Protection Act are the responsibility of the Lord Chancellor’s Department. A few of its strategic objectives being:

To improve people’s knowledge and understanding of their rights and responsibilities
Seeking to encourage an increase in openness in the public sector
Monitoring the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information
Developing a data protection policy which properly balances personal information privacy with the need for public and private organisations to process personal information
The Data Protection Act does not give third parties rights of access to personal information for research purposes.

The FOI Act does not give individuals access to their personal information, though if a request is made, the Data Protection Act gives the individual this right. If the individual chooses to make this information public it could be used alongside non-personal information gained by the public under the terms of the FOI Act.

The Wycliffe Medical Practice has a legal duty to explain how we use any personal information we collect about you, as a registered patient at the practice. Staff at this practice maintain records about your health and the treatment you receive in electronic and paper format.

What information do we collect about you?
We will collect information such as personal details, including name, address, next of kin, records of appointments, visits, telephone calls, your health records, treatment and medications, test results, X-rays, etc. and any other relevant information to enable us to deliver effective medical care.

How we will use your information
Your data is collected for the purpose of providing direct patient care; however, we can disclose this information if it is required by law, if you give consent or if it is justified in the public interest. The practice may be requested to support research; however, we will always gain your consent before sharing your information with medical research databases when the law allows.

In order to comply with its legal obligations, this practice may send data to NHS Digital when directed by the Secretary of State for Health under the Health and Social Care Act 2012. Additionally, this practice contributes to national clinical audits and will send the data that is required by NHS Digital when the law allows. This may include demographic data, such as date of birth, and information about your health which is recorded in coded form; for example, the clinical code for diabetes or high blood pressure.

Processing your information in this way and obtaining your consent ensures that we comply with Articles 6(1)(c), 6(1)(e) and 9(2)(h) of the GDPR.

Maintaining confidentiality and accessing your records
We are committed to maintaining confidentiality and protecting the information we hold about you. We adhere to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the NHS Codes of Confidentiality and Security, as well as guidance issued by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). You have a right to access the information we hold about you, and if you would like to access this information, you will need to complete a Subject Access Request (SAR). Please ask at reception for a SAR form and you will be given further information. Furthermore, should you identify any inaccuracies; you have a right to have the inaccurate data corrected.

Health and social care providers who are involved in delivering care to you (either currently or in the future) can benefit from being able to access your electronic summary care record including enhanced information (if you have authorised your GP to share this data), to support them with making a fully informed decision about the care you require. The organisations this includes are Leicester City Council, Leicestershire County Council and Rutland County Council

Please click here to view our Practice Privacy Notice

The Wycliffe Medical Practice is committed to promoting an environment which provides for the support and well-being of patients and we offer a number of services to facilitate this:

• A private room in which to speak with a receptionist
• An alternative to the Patient Call Board
• A chaperone during consultations
• A translation service for patients whose first language is not English
• A hearing loop
• Disabled toilet facilities
• A private room for breast feeding
• A quiet waiting area
• Male and female Doctors, subject to availability
• Assistance dogs are permitted in all parts of the building

Please ask the Receptionist if you wish to use any of these facilities

Patient Responsibility
The Wycliffe Medical Practice works in partnership with the patients. This means both the surgery and the patients have a responsibility to each other to work together. The patient has a responsibility to ensure the services provided under the NHS are used appropriately, and any appointments made are kept or cancelled in order to reduce wastage.

Zero Tolerance
The surgery operates a zero tolerance policy and will not endure abusive, violent or unreasonable behaviour. Patients who are deemed to be within this category will be removed from the surgery list, and will be required to register with a secure surgery in Leicester.

What is risk stratification?
There are two kinds of risk stratification:
1.  The first kind is a process for identifying some patients within a Practice who might benefit from extra assessment or support with self-care because of the nature of their health problems.  The process is a mixture of analysis of information by computer followed by review of the results by a clinical team at the Practice.

The analysis can, for example, help predict the risk of an unplanned hospital admission so that preventative measures can be taken as early as possible to try and avoid it.  In the end, it is the clinical team of the GP Practice that will decide how your care is best managed.

2.  The second kind is a process for identifying patterns of ill health and needs across our local population.  This will be done by pulling together all the information in an anonymised file (where your identity has been removed) to look at patterns and trends of illness across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland as a whole.  This will help our Public Health Department and those in the NHS who are responsible for planning and arranging health services across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland (known as commissioners) better understand the current and possible future health needs of the local population.  This will help them make provision for the most appropriate health services for the people of this area.  This group of staff will not be able to identify you as an individual under any circumstances.

In both cases the NHS systems and will processes will protect your health information and patient confidentiality at all times.

All registered patients have a named GP who has overall responsibility for the care and support that our practice provides to you.  Where relevant, your named GP will work with other health and care professionals to ensure that your care package meets your individual need.

If you wish to know the name of your allocated GP, please ask at reception.

You do not need to always book to see your named GP – You may ask to be seen or treated by the GP of your choice.  We will make every effort to ensure you do see the doctor of your choice, but this may not always be possible, particularly if you need to be seen urgently.

New patients will be allocated a named GP when they register with the practice.

Your Summary Care Record, SCR, is the part of your GP records that can be accessed by emergency doctors and Out of Hours services if you require treatment.  The clinician treating you will always ask permission to access your SCR.  Unless you have specifically previously dissented all patients will have a basic SCR which will include only your allergies and any drug sensitivities plus recently prescribed medication as detailed in your GP records.

The doctors of The Wycliffe Medical Practice would like to encourage you to take advantage of a new initiative called the Enhanced Summary Care Record which will enable other healthcare providers to access the following information with your permission:

• Medication
• Allergies and adverse reactions
• Significant medical history and procedures
• Anticipatory care information
• Immunisations
• End of life care information
• Communication preferences
• Next of Kin

You can find out more about Summary Care Records at https://digital.nhs.uk/summary-care-records

Please print off and return the authorisation form to reception

Our staff come to work to care for others, and it is important for all members of the public and our staff to be treated with courtesy and respect.

In line with the rest of the NHS and to ensure this is fully observed, we have a Dignity at Work and Zero Tolerance policy.

This means that aggressive or violent behaviour towards our staff or any member of the public within our Practice premises will not be tolerated under any circumstances.

Anyone giving verbal abuse to members of staff, either in person or over the telephone, will be sent a letter from the Practice Manager advising that this behaviour will not be tolerated. Any future violation of this policy will result in the removal from the Practice patient list. There will be no appeal process.

We feel sure that you will understand that proper behaviour is absolutely necessary for our staff and patients and that non-observance will not be accepted.