Practice Charter

The doctors, nurses and administrative staff at this surgery share a commitment to provide you with the highest standard of medical care. In particular:

• Patients have the right to be treated courteously.

• Patients have a right to confidentiality.

• Doctors and nurses will begin surgery at the appropriate time. Any delay will be due to a medical necessity. When there is a prolonged delay, patients have the right to be informed and to make an alternative appointment if they wish.

• Patients have the right to information about their own health, particularly the illness and its treatment, the alternative forms of treatment and the likely outcome of the illness.

• The practice will advise patients of the steps they can take to promote good health and to avoid illness e.g. smoking cessation, exercise, immunisation etc, and advice on self help with minor illnesses.

• The practice will inform patients of services available by means of its booklet, notice boards, leaflets, newsletter and this website.

• Patients with urgent medical conditions will be given priority and will be seen as soon as possible, even when this means a delay to booked appointments.

• New patients will be offered an appointment with the practice nurse or doctor.

• If you are aged between 16 and 75 who have not attended the surgery within the past three years you are welcome to attend a consultation and will be offered the appropriate health checks.

• Patients aged 75 and over who have not attended the surgery within 12 months are welcome to attend for a general consultation and will be offered appropriate health checks.
This may take place in the patient’s home if their medical condition requires it.

• Patients will be referred to a consultant/hospital acceptable to them when their GP thinks it is necessary.

• Patients will have easy access to the practice complaints procedure.

• Acute prescriptions will be completed with minimum delay.

• Repeat prescriptions will be available within 48 hours.

• Patients may choose whether or not to take part in training. With these rights come responsibilities, and for patients this means:

• Treat us with the same courtesy and respect that you expect to receive. We will not tolerate rudeness or abuse of any kind towards our staff, or violence towards anyone in the surgery or to our property.

• Attend appointments on time or give the practice adequate notice that you wish to cancel – lateness or non-attendance inconveniences other patients and wastes appointments.

• An appointment is for one person only.

• Patients should make every effort to attend the surgery to make best use of nursing and medical time and ask for a home visit only if too ill to attend surgery. Lack of transport is not a reason to request a visit.

• Repeat prescriptions should be ordered in plenty of time.

• Calls to the emergency GP service out of hours should only be made if there is a real urgency and attendances at the local A&E department made only for accidents and emergencies.

• Patients should inform the practice if they change address or telephone number and please remember to include a postcode. It is also important for those receiving treatment at the hospital to inform them of the same changes so that our records match when we communicate with them.

• Please do not try to pressurise staff or doctors into issuing inappropriate medications or repeat prescriptions.

The practice does not discriminate on the grounds of race, gender, social class, age, religion, sexual orientation, appearance, disability or medical condition.

SUGGESTIONS/COMPLAINTS

We are continually striving to improve our service. Any helpful suggestions would be much appreciated and a suggestion box is located in the waiting area.

We make every effort to give the best service possible to everyone who attends our practice. However, we are aware that things can go wrong resulting in a patient feeling that they have a genuine cause for complaint. If this is so, we would wish for the matter to be settled as quickly and as amicably as possible. The practice has an agreed procedure for handling patients' complaints which complies with the NHS complaints procedure. Simply contact the practice manager, Julia Bailey, and she will set all the necessary wheels in motion. Further written information on the complaints procedure is available from reception.

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION – PUBLICATION SCHEME

The Freedom of Information Act 2000 obliges the practice to produce a Publication Scheme. A Publication Scheme is a guide to the ‘classes’ of information the practice intends to routinely make available.

This scheme is available from reception.

ZERO TOLERANCE POLICY

The practice considers aggressive behaviour to be any personal, abusive and/or aggressive comments, cursing and/or swearing, physical contact and/or aggressive gestures.

The practice will request the removal of any patient from the practice list who is aggressive or abusive towards a doctor, member of staff, other patient, or who damages property.

All instances of actual physical abuse on any doctor or member of staff, by a patient or their relatives will be reported to the police as an assault.

CONFIDENTIALITY

We ask you for information so that you can receive proper care and treatment.

We keep this information, together with details of your care, because it may be needed if we see you again.

We may use some of this information for other reasons: for example, to help us protect the health of the public generally and to see that the NHS runs efficiently, plans for the future, trains its staff, pays its bills and can account for its actions. Information may also be needed to help educate tomorrow’s clinical staff and to carry out medical and other health research for the benefit of everyone. Sometimes the law requires us to pass on information: for example, to notify a birth.

The NHS Central Register for England and Wales contains basic personal details of all patients registered with a general practitioner. The Register does not contain clinical information. You have a right of access to your health records.

EVERYONE WORKING FOR THE NHS HAS A LEGAL DUTY TO KEEP INFORMATION ABOUT YOU CONFIDENTIAL.

You may be receiving care from other people as well as the NHS. So that we can all work together for your benefit we may need to share some information about you.

We only use or pass on information about you if people have a genuine need for it in your and everyone’s interests. Whenever we can we shall remove details which identify you. The sharing of some types of very sensitive personal information is strictly controlled by law.

There will be some circumstances where we will not need consent, for example, where doing so would:

• place a child at increased risk of significant harm; or

• place an adult at increased risk of serious harm; or

• prejudice the prevention, detection or prosecution of a serious crime; or

• lead to unjustified delay in making enquiries about allegations of significant harm or serious harm.

Anyone who receives information from us is also under a legal duty to keep it confidential.

Electronic data kept on computer complies with the Data Protection Act.

ACCESS TO MEDICAL RECORDS

If you require any information regarding your medical record, please ask the receptionist who will be happy to provide you with an Access to Health Records leaflet.

Summary Care Record – your emergency care summary

The NHS in England is introducing the Summary Care Record, for all patients’ age 16 and above, which will be used in emergency care. The record will contain information about any medicines you are taking, allergies you suffer from and any bad reactions to medicines you have had to ensure those caring for you have enough information to treat you safely. Your Summary Care Record will be available to authorised healthcare staff providing your care anywhere in England, but they will ask your permission before they look at it.

This means that if you have an accident or become ill, healthcare staff treating you will have immediate access to important information about your health.

This practice is supporting Summary Care Records and as a patient you have a choice:

• Yes I would like a Summary Care Record – you do not need to do anything and a Summary
Care Record will be created for you.

• No I do not want a Summary Care Record – Please ask reception for a form, complete the form and hand it to a member of the GP practice staff. For more information you can talk to the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) (01244 650368), visit the website (www.wcheshirepct.nhs.uk/) or www.nhscarerecords nhs.uk or telephone the dedicated NHS Summary Care Record Information Line on 0300 123 3020.

You can choose not to have a Summary Care Record and you can change your mind at
any time by informing us.