Confidentiality and medical records
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.
Our reception and administration team require access to your medical records in order to carry out their jobs. These members of staff are bound by the same rules of confidentiality as the clinical team.
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 Ellie Dougall, 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’s Data Controller Ellie Dougall, Practice Manager. No information will be released without the patient consent unless we are legally obliged to do so.
Chaperone
Mowbray Group Surgeries is committed to providing a safe, comfortable environment where patients and staff can be confident that best practice is being followed at all times and the safety of everyone is of paramount importance.
All patients are entitled to have a chaperone present for any consultation, examination or procedure where they feel one is required. This chaperone may be a family member or friend. On occasions you may prefer a formal chaperone to be present, i.e. a clinically trained member of staff.
Wherever possible we would ask you to make this request at the time of booking your appointment so that arrangements can be made and your appointment is not delayed in any way. Where this is not possible we will endeavour to provide a formal chaperone at the time of request. However occasionally it may be necessary to reschedule your appointment.
Your healthcare professional may also require a chaperone to be present for certain consultations in accordance with our chaperone policy.
If you have any questions or comments regarding this please ask at Reception.
Safeguarding
Safeguarding simply means keeping people safe from harm. It is about protecting children and adults from abuse or neglect.
The document below outlines our safeguarding policy and provides information on how to recognise abuse and what to do if you are concerned about someone.
Zero tolerance 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.
Complaints
We make every effort to give the best service possible to everyone who attends our practice. However, we are aware that from time to time problems can occur. Most problems can be resolved quickly and easily, often at the time they arise, or by contacting a member of the practice team.
Where you are not able to resolve your problem in this way you can find more information by speaking to Ellie Dougall, Practice Manager or consulting our patient complaint information leaflet which is available at reception.
From 1 July 2023 the way members of the public make a complaint about primary care services (GPs, pharmacy, optometry) to the commissioner changed. Rather than contacting NHS England, they now need to contact their local integrated care board (ICB). Members of the public can still make a complaint to the provider. This has not changed.
Sedatives for flying
We will not prescribe Diazepam for patients who wish to use this for a fear of flying. We have made this decision due to the following reasons:
- Diazepam is a sedative. This means, the medication makes you sleepy and more relaxed. If there were to be an emergency during the flight, this could impair your ability to concentrate, follow instructions or react to the situation. This could seriously affect the safety of you and the people around you.
- Sedative drugs can make you fall asleep, however, when you sleep it is an unnatural non-REM sleep. This means, your movements during sleep are reduced and this can place you at an increased risk of developing blood clots (DVT). These blood clots are very dangerous and can even prove fatal. This risk further increases if your flight is over 4 hours long.
- Although most people respond to benzodiazepines like Diazepam with sedation, a small proportion experience the opposite effect and can become aggressive. They can also lead to disinhibition and make you behave in ways you normally wouldn’t. This could also impact on your safety and the safety of your fellow passengers.
- National prescribing guidelines followed by prescribers also don’t allow the use of benzodiazepines in cases or phobia.
- In several countries, diazepam and similar drugs are illegal. They would be confiscated, and you might find yourself in trouble with the police for being in control of an illegal substance.
- Diazepam has a long half-life. This means it stays in your system for a significant time and you may fail random drug testing if you are subjected to such testing as is required in some jobs.
We appreciate a fear of flying is very real and very frightening and can be debilitating. However, there are much better and effective ways of tackling the problem. We recommend you tackle your problem with a Fear of Flying Course, which is run by several airlines. These courses are far more effective than diazepam, they have none of the undesirable effects and the positive effects of the courses continue after the courses have been completed.
Fear of Flying Courses (Others are available)
Easy Jet – Fear of flying course | Fearless Flyer (easyjet.com)
British Airways – Flying with Confidence | Special assistance | British Airways
Flying Without Fear – Flying Without Fear | Courses to Conquer Your Fear of Flying
Thank you for your understanding.
Mowbray Group Surgeries
Sedatives for Procedures and Scans
It is practice policy not to prescribe sedatives, such as diazepam, for any procedure or scan being undertaken outside the practice. This includes MRI scans and dental procedures.
This is because responsibility for monitoring the patient during the scan/procedure is the responsibility of the prescriber, so should be prescribed the consultant or dentist requesting it or radiographer. This policy decision has been made by the GP Partners and is adhered to by all prescribers working in the practice. If you feel you need support, please contact the clinician who requested the MRI or procedure. They may prescribe if they feel appropriate. All our local NHS hospitals and Dentists have formal procedures in place for sedation during procedures, so you should not be directed to your GP for this.
We hope the reasons outlined below help to explain our main concerns.
- Lack of Regular Involvement and Training: GPs are not regularly involved, skilled, trained, or appraised in sedation skills. Providing too little sedation won’t help you, and providing too much sedation can make you too sleepy, which could lead to the procedure being cancelled. Excessive sedation can also dangerously affect your breathing. After taking a sedative for a procedure or scan, you will need to be closely monitored to keep you safe.
- Unpredictable Effects of Diazepam: Although diazepam makes most people sleepy, in some rare situations, it can have the opposite effect and make people aggressive or agitated.
- Timing of Sedation: Scans and hospital procedures are often delayed. Therefore, the team performing the procedure or scan should provide the sedation to ensure you become sleepy and relaxed at the right time.
- Need for Regular Monitoring: Sedated patients should be regularly monitored. There has been a case where a GP-prescribed sedative was used, the patient wasn’t monitored, and subsequently had a respiratory arrest in an MRI machine.
Feel free to show this policy to your hospital team or dentist.
Thank you for your understanding.
Mowbray Group Surgeries
