Summary Care Record: Changes to how we ask for information

The Register with a GP surgery service previously asked patients if they wanted to share information their GP holds about their health with other healthcare professionals across the country. 

When registering, the patient had three choices: 

• share their SCR with other healthcare professionals, 
• share their SCR with other healthcare professionals along with additional information,
• do not share their SCR.

The new version of the question does not ask patients to choose what information they share. Instead, the page explains what an SCR is, the basis on which information is shared for the purposes of direct care, and how the user can change their preferences using the SCR patient preference form.  

The new page has been designed to make it simpler for patients to: 

• understand what an SCR is,  

• how it supports direct care, and 

• what information is shared and how they can set or change their preferences. 

All patients registered with a GP have an SCR, unless they have chosen not to have one. A patient’s SCR will be shared with authorised staff involved in their care. Any patients who have opted out/chosen not to have an SCR or indicated specific sharing preferences will still have these honoured. 

Future patient preferences should be submitted by patients to their GP practice using the SCR patient preference form. 

You will no longer see changes to a patient’s SCR preferences when you receive their registration email.  

However, patients may choose to change their SCR preferences using the SCR patient preference form after they have registered.  

Please continue to raise awareness of the importance of patients having an SCR and the benefits of this being shared for purposes of direct care.