Dingwall Medical Group

Rights and Responsibilities of Patients

• We ask that our patients treat all the doctors and all practice staff with courtesy and respect. If patients are violent or abusive to staff or doctors they will be removed from our list immediately. It will then be up to them to find alternative medical care.

• Please try to stay with the same doctor for ongoing problems.

• Please do everything you can to keep appointments. If you cannot attend please cancel as early as possible so the appointment can be offered to someone else.

• Please remember to check your stocks of medication regularly so you don't run out.
Remember: requests take 48 hours to process.
Similarly, check stocks before re-ordering to minimise the risk of stock-piling.

• If telephoning for results please try and phone between 3.30 - 4.30pm when a member of staff will be available to answer your query. Be prepared to answer questions to confirm your identity.

• You have a responsibility to help us maintain accurate records. Please remember to tell us if you change your name and address.

Chaperone Policy

The Dingwall Medical Group 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 patients may prefer a formal chaperone to be present, i.e. a trained member of staff.

Wherever possible we would ask patients make this request at the time of booking appointment so that arrangements can be made and the 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.

Healthcare professionals may also require a chaperone to be present for certain consultations.
Any questions or comments regarding this should be directed to the practice manager.

Comments and Suggestions

As a practice we try very hard to provide high quality care, but occasionally there will be times when patients feel that things have gone wrong.  If you would like to suggest improvements, we would like to discuss these with you.  You may discuss your suggestions or concerns with the practice manager or a general practitioner.

If your concerns in particular cannot be resolved in this informal manner, and you wish to pursue a complaint, we suggest the following procedure should be adopted.

• Please put your complaint in writing as soon as possible and address it to the practice manager at Dingwall Health Centre, Ferry Road, Dingwall, IV15 9QS.

• Your complaint will be acknowledged within 3 working days
• The complaint will be fully investigated and if necessary a meeting will be arranged with you.
• Following investigation of the complaint, action if necessary will be taken in regard to staff, or practice procedures, and a letter outlining the outcome will be sent to you, including an explanation and apology if deemed appropriate..
• A full response should be provided to you within 10 working days of receipt of the complaint. If for some reason this timescale is not possible, perhaps because of annual leave or sickness, then you will be sent a letter giving a reason for the delay and an estimated timescale for the complaint to be investigated. Normally this should be within 20 working days of the date of the receipt of the complaint.
• If the foregoing procedure does not result in resolution of the complaint, you can forward your complaint to:
  
  
  • The Complaints Team, NHS Highland, PO box 5713, Inverness, IV1 9AQ, Tel: 01463 705997, fax: 01463 711322
  • Independent Advice and Support Service, which can be accessed via the local Citizens Advice Bureau
  • Scottish Public Services Ombudsman Tel: 0800 377 7330 or at www.spso.org.uk

We are always anxious to improve our services and provide high quality care.

Confidentiality of Records

1) Practice inspections
To ensure that quality of care provided to patients is kept to the highest standard all practices are required to undergo regular practice visits by external assessors. These visits involve a team of five assessors which may include a lay member.

During such a visit:-

• Practice records may be disclosed to persons outside the practice team.
  
• The purpose of such disclosure is strictly limited to a verification process which is required to assess the quality of care provided by their practice.
  
• The visit team adheres to a strict duty of confidentiality.
  
• The lay visitor does not need to have access to medical information about individual patients.
  
• Any patient may object to the whole or part of the inspection of their own records and be assured that their objection will be respected.

If you do not wish your records to be inspected on any such visit, inform the staff at reception.

2) Access to medical records
Patients can apply to the practice to see their own medical records. They should apply in writing and an appointment will be made for them to come to the practice to see them.
A charge may apply if copies are requested.

3) Data protection
Patients' records are used for the following purposes within the practice:

• Routine record keeping and consultation of records in the course of provision of care and treatment.
  
• Disclosures made by health professional to another, eg where a GP refers to a specialist.
  
• Clinical audit, eg where checks are made by the practice to ensure your care is up to standard.
  
• Processing for administrative purposes, eg where a disclosure is made so that a GP can be paid for providing a particular service and also post-payment checks by the Health Board.
  
• Administrative audit, eg studies designed to improve the efficiency of the NHS as an organisation.
  
• Statutory and non-statutory disclosures to disease registers and for epidemiological research.

If you have concerns about the use of your personal data for any of these purposes please discuss with your doctor.

4) Freedom of Information
The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 came into force on 1st January, 2005 and enables any person requesting information from a public body to receive that information, subject to certain exemptions. This is to encourage public authorities (eg. GP Practices) to be more open and accountable and organise their information in an efficient and accessible way.

This excludes personal data.

Download the Practice Publication Scheme document HERE!