Part of A guide to confidentiality in health and social care: references
List of key documents
The following is a list of key documents which underpin much of the guidance within this guide but which are not covered in detail elsewhere. This list will be amended and added to as this ‘living’ document evolves.
Summary
The following is a list of key documents which underpin much of the guidance within this guide but which are not covered in detail elsewhere. This list will be amended and added to as this ‘living’ document evolves.
The NHS Constitution
Relevant parts of the NHS Constitution include:
Patients and the public – your rights and NHS pledges to you
You have the right of access to your own health records.
You have the right to be informed about how your information is used.
You have the right to request that your confidential data is not used beyond your own care and treatment and to have your objections considered, and where your wishes cannot be followed, to be told the reasons including the legal basis.
The NHS also commits
- to ensure those involved in your care and treatment have access to your health data so they can care for you safely and effectively (pledge)
- to anonymise the data collected during the course of your treatment and use it to support research and improve care for others (pledge)
- where identifiable data has to be used, to give you the chance to object wherever possible (pledge)
- to inform you of research studies in which you may be eligible to participate (pledge)
- to share with you any correspondence sent between clinicians about your care (pledge)
- to offer you easily accessible, reliable and relevant information and support to use it. This will enable you to participate fully in your own healthcare decisions and to support you in making choices. This will include information on the range and quality of clinical services where there is robust and accurate information available (pledge)
- to provide you with the information and support you need to influence and scrutinise the planning and delivery of NHS services (pledge)
- to involve you in discussions about planning your care and to offer you a written record of what is agreed if you want one (pledge)
- to encourage and welcome feedback on your health and care experiences and use this to improve services (pledge)
Staff - your responsibilities
You have a duty to protect the confidentiality of personal information that you hold.
You should aim
- to inform patients about the use of their confidential data and to record their objections, consent or dissent; and
- to provide access to a patient’s data to other relevant professionals, always doing so securely, and only where there is a legal and appropriate basis to do so
Care Record Guarantees
Two Care Record Guarantees for England were developed by the National Information Governance Board (NIGB) which no longer exists. One was designed for the NHS and one for social care.
The NHS and Social Care Record Guarantees include information on
- people's access to their own records
- how access to an individual's healthcare record will be monitored and policed and what controls are in place to prevent unauthorised access
- options people have to further limit access
- access in an emergency
- what happens when someone is unable to make decisions for themselves
Last edited: 17 January 2022 1:57 pm