Your GP, hospital, community health, mental health and social care teams may all hold records about your care separately. Often, only health and care professionals within the same organisation can see this information. This means it can be difficult for them to work together to deliver the best care.

My Care Record is an approach to improving care by joining up health and care information. Wherever possible, health and care professionals will be able to access your records from other services when it is needed for your care. This will make it easier and faster for them to make the best decisions. For example, a doctor treating you in hospital or a nurse working in the community could view the information they need from your GP record.

Several different secure computer systems are used across the region. These allow health and care professionals to digitally access your records held by other services. In some areas systems are already in place, in other areas more work is underway to invest in the technology needed.

The approach also provides an agreement between all the health and care organisations involved. This means they commit to sharing information in a secure way to help improve your care.

The My Care Record approach is in line with General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which provides the legal basis to share information between health and care services when it is needed to deliver care. All your information will be held securely.

Certain information (that doesn’t identify you) will also be used to help improve services and plan for the future. For example, it will help us plan for the number of doctors, nurses and care workers needed to look after you in the future.

You can object to your record being shared between services. To do this, speak to the person delivering care to you at each organisation such as your GP, specialist or social worker.

• It is important to understand that not allowing access to your information may affect the quality of the care you receive.
• In many situations it is necessary to share information between services to deliver care. However, it may be possible to request that specific or sensitive information is not made available.
• There may also be some situations where information still needs to be made available. For example, if there is a serious concern about an individual’s safety.

More information about the areas where your information may be used can be found on the My Care Record website www.mycarerecord.org.uk.

Categories of Personal Data Processed

Processing of Personal and Special Category information to be acquired from the provider systems and accessed across participating health and care organisations in support of direct care by participating partner organisations.

Lawful Basis for Processing

Health and care partner organisations adopt the following as the lawful basis for processing:

• GDPR Article 6(1) d – vital interests
• GDPR Article 6(1) e – exercise of official authority (“processing is necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority vested in the controller”)
• Special categories – sensitive information
• GDPR Article 9(2) h – health or social care provision
• GDPR Article 9(2) b may apply
• Processing personal information
• For the purposes of safeguarding children and vulnerable adults
• Common Law Duty of Confidentiality

What Information will be Accessed under My Care Record?

Your records will include information as detailed below, but is not exclusive to:

• Name, address, NHS number and phone number
• Medical Conditions
• Treatment provided and contact the individual has had with the organisation
• Care Plans
• Emergency department treatment
• Discharge Summaries
• Medication Reviews
• Medical Reports
• Care and Support plans
• Care plans reviews – adult social care assessments
• Results of investigations, such as x-rays, scans, and laboratory tests

Each partner organisation participating is responsible for the information they share/access within the shared environment, including personal and special category data incorporated from individual records held by partner organisations. The information that can be accessed from your record from each service or organisation will depend on the system that is used.

All partners are subject to a number of legal obligations to ensure that the processing of personal information remains lawful. This includes, legislation, standard, statutory and non-statutory guidance.

Record Retention

Personal data is stored securely for the duration specified by the NHS Digital / Information Governance Alliance (IGA) Retention schedule. Once information that is held has been identified for destruction it will be disposed of in the most appropriate way for the type of information it is.

Complaints

All partner organisations have complaints procedures. If you wish to make a complaint, please contact your direct care provider such as your GP, hospital consultant, social worker or speak to their PALS (Patients Advisors and Liaisons Services) / Complaints department. Individuals also have the right to make a complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office regarding breaches of confidentiality.

For independent advice about data protection, privacy, data sharing issues and your rights you can contact:

Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

Telephone: 0303 123 1113 (local rate) or 01625 545 745

Email: casework@ico.org.uk

Visit the ICO website: www.ico.org.uk

Access to Your Information

My Care Record is simply a reflection of your individual records held by the partner organisations as listed on My Care Record website, should you require access to your records held by these organisations, please contact them directly. Please contact your own general practice directly for a copy of your GP record.

Who is Involved?

You can find further information and the full list of partner organisations involved in My Care Record with their contact details on their website.