What is it?

On 25^th May 2018 the General Data Protection regulations (GDPR) came into force in the UK.  The GDPR builds on the current Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA) and will strengthen the legislation, giving individuals more rights and protections.

What are my rights?

Under GDPR individuals have the following rights:

• The right to be informed about the collection and use of their personal data.
• The right of access to their personal data and supplementary information and the right to obtain confirmation that their data is being processed
• The right to rectification, i.e. the right to have inaccurate personal data rectified, or completed if it is incomplete. In certain circumstances a request for rectification can be refused.
• The right to erasure, also known as ‘the right to be forgotten’. This right is not absolute and only applies in certain circumstances.
• The right to request the restriction or suppression of their personal data. When processing is restricted, it is permitted to store the personal data, but not to use it.  This right is not absolute and only applies in certain circumstances.
• The right to data portability allows individuals to obtain and reuse their personal data for their own purposes across different services. It allows them to move, copy or transfer personal data easily from one IT environment to another in a safe and secure way, without affecting its usability. This right only applies to information an individual has provided to a controller.
• The right to object to:
  • processing based on legitimate interests or the performance of a task in the public interest/exercise of official authority (including profiling);
  • direct marketing (including profiling); and
  • processing for purposes of scientific/historical research and statistics.
• Rights in relation to automated decision making (making a decision solely by automated means without any human involvement) and profiling (automated processing of personal data to evaluate certain things about an individual). This applies to all automated individual decision-making and profiling. This type of decision-making can only be carried out where the decision is:
  • necessary for the entry into or performance of a contract; or
  • authorised by Union or Member state law applicable to the controller; or
  • based on the individual’s explicit consent.

 What is the lawful basis for Chew Medical Practice to process my data?

There are six available lawful bases for processing. The processing of personal data in the delivery of direct care and for providers’ administrative purposes in this surgery, and in support of direct care elsewhere, is supported under the following Article 6 and 9 conditions of the GDPR:

• Article 6(1)(e) ‘…necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority…’.
• Article 9(2)(h) ‘necessary for the purposes of preventative or occupational medicine for the assessment of the working capacity of the employee, medical diagnosis, the provision of health or social care or treatment or the management of health or social care systems and services...”

We will also recognise your rights established under UK case law collectively known as the “Common Law Duty of Confidentiality”

How will Chew Medical Practice use my data?

• We will handle all medical records according to the laws on data protection and confidentiality.
• We share medical records with health professionals who are involved in providing you with care and treatment. This is on a need to know basis and event by event.
• Some of your data is automatically copied to the Shared Care Summary Record
• We may share some of your data with local out of hours, urgent or emergency care services
• Data about you is used to manage national screening campaigns such as Flu, Cervical cytology and Diabetes prevention.
• Data about you, usually anonymised, is used to manage the NHS and make payments.
• We share information when the law requires us to do, for instance when we are inspected or reporting certain illnesses or safeguarding vulnerable people.
• Your data is used to check the quality of care provided by the NHS.
• We may sometimes share medical records, usually anonymised, for medical research.

How long will my data be kept for?

Data will be retained in accordance with the Records Management Code of Practice for Health and Social Care 2016 which sets out how long records should be retained, either due to their ongoing administrative value or as a result of statutory requirement.  For example:

The full list of retention periods for all data is available on request from the Practice Manager.

What if I am unhappy with how Chew Medical Practice handles my data?

You can complain by following the Practice’s complaints procedure.  Details of how to raise a complaint with the Practice are contained in our complaints leaflet, available from the surgery or on our website at: www.chewmedicalpractice.co.uk

If you are still not happy once we have responded to your complaint, you can raise your concern with the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) at:

Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

Tel: 0303 123 1113 (local rate) or 01625 545 745 if you prefer to use a national rate number

Email:  casework@ico.org.uk

May 2018