Our Practice is committed to providing a safe, comfortable environment where patients and staff can be confident that best practice is being followed at all times.

All patients are entitled to have a chaperone present for any consultation, examination or procedure. This chaperone may be a family member or friend. On occasions you might prefer the chaperone to be a trained member of staff.

Whenever possible we would ask you to make this request at the time of booking so that your appointment is not delayed in any way. When this is not possible we will do our best to provide a chaperone at the time of request.

Please Note- There may be occasions when it is necessary to reschedule your appointment. Also, your healthcare professional might require a chaperone to be present for certain consultations.

How we protect your data

Confidentiality Policy

Confidentiality is the cornerstone of health care and central to the work of everyone working in general practice. All information about patients is confidential: from the most sensitive diagnosis, to the fact of having visited the surgery or being registered at the practice.

The duty of confidentiality owed to a person under 16 is as great as the duty owed to any other person.

All patients can expect that their personal information will not be disclosed without their permission except in the most exceptional of circumstances, when somebody is at grave risk of serious harm.

Responsibilities of practice staff

All health professionals must follow their professional codes of practice and the law. This means that they must make every effort to protect confidentiality. It also means that no identifiable information about a patient is passed to anyone or any agency without the express permission of that patient, except when this is essential for providing care or necessary to protect somebody’s health, safety or well being.

All health professionals are individually accountable for their own actions. They should also work together as a team to ensure that standards of confidentiality are upheld and that improper disclosures are avoided.

Additionally, the GP as employer:

• is responsible for ensuring that everybody employed by the practice understands the need for. and maintains, confidentiality;
• has overall responsibility for ensuring that systems and mechanisms to protect confidentiality.are in place;
• has vicarious liability for the actions of those working in the practice -including the health professionals and non-clinical staff.

Standards of confidentiality apply to all health professionals, administrative and ancillary staff – including receptionists, secretaries, practice managers, cleaners and maintenance staff who are bound by contracts of employment to maintain confidentiality -and also to students or others observing practice. They must not reveal to anybody outside the practice, personal information they learn in the course of their work, or due to their presence in the surgery, without the patient’s consent. Nor will they discuss with colleagues any aspect of a patient’s attendance at the surgery in a way that might allow identification of the patient, unless to do so is necessary for that patient’s care.

If disclosure is necessary

If a patient or another person is at grave risk of serious harm which disclosure to an appropriate person would prevent, the relevant health professional will counsel the patient about the benefits of disclosure. If the patient refuses to allow disclosure, the health professional can take advice from colleagues within the practice, or from a professional, regulatory or defence body, in order to decide whether a disclosure without consent is justified to protect the patient or another person. If a decision is taken to disclose, the patient should always be informed before the disclosure is made, unless to do so could be dangerous. If at all possible, any such decisions should be shared with another member of the practice team.

Any decision to disclose information to protect health, safety or well being will be based on the degree of current or potential harm, not on the age of the patient.

All staff have to sign a document which legally binds them to abide by the above agreement.

General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

GDPR stands for General Data Protection Regulations and is a new piece of legislation that will work alongside the Data Protection Act. It will not only apply to the UK and EU; it covers anywhere in the world in which data about EU citizens is processed.

The GDPR is similar to the Data Protection Act (DPA) 1998 (which the practice already complies with) but strengthens many of the DPA’s principles.

View our Data Protection Privacy Notice for Patients 

Records Used for Research and Planning

Your health records contain a type of data called confidential patient information. This data can be used to help with research and planning.

You can choose to stop your confidential patient information being used for research and planning. You can also make a choice for someone else like your children under the age of 13.

Your choice will only apply to the health and care system in England.

To find out more about how you can Opt Out your data being used please see this Link

Once you have accessed this link please work through all the pages and follow the process to Opt Out if you still wish to by downloading the form below and emailing the completed form to [email protected] or posting the form back to us.

We always try to give you the best service possible, but there may be times when you feel this has not happened.

Please note that Southover Medical Practice keeps strictly to the rules of medical confidentiality. If you are complaining on behalf of someone else, the practice needs to know that you have their permission to do so. A note signed by the person concerned will be required, unless they are incapable of providing this due to illness or disability.

If you have a complaint about the service you have received from any member of staff working in this practice, please let us know. The practice operates a Complaints Procedure as part of the NHS system for dealing with complaints. Our complaints system meets national criteria.

Note: If you make a complaint it is practice policy to ensure you are not discriminated against, or subjected to any negative effect on your care, treatment or support.

In the first instance please discuss your complaint with the staff member concerned. Where the issue cannot be resolved at this stage, please contact the Practice Manager who will try to resolve the issue and offer you further advice on the complaints procedure. If your problem cannot be resolved at this stage and you wish to make a formal complaint please let us know as soon as possible, ideally within a matter of days. This will enable the practice to get a clear picture of the circumstances surrounding the complaint.

If it is not possible to raise your complaint immediately, please let us have details of your complaint within the following timescales:

• Within 6 months of the incident that caused the problem

OR

• Within 6 months of discovering that you have a problem, provided this is within 12 months

The practice will acknowledge your complaint within three working days and aim to have looked into your complaint within ten working days of the date you raised it with us. At this stage you should be offered an explanation or a meeting with the person(s) involved. When the practice looks into your complaint it aims to:

• Ascertain the full circumstances of the complaint
• Make arrangements for you to discuss the problem with those concerned, if you would like this
• Make sure you receive an apology, where this is appropriate
• Identify what the practice can do to make sure the problem does not happen again

PATIENT ADVISORY LIAISON SERVICE (PALS)

PALS provide a confidential service designed to help patients get the most from the NHS. PALS can tell you more about the NHS complaints procedure and may be able to help you resolve your complaint informally. You can contact your local PALS office on 01803 655838 or 0800 0282037.

INDEPENDENT COMPLAINTS AND ADVOCACY SERVICE (ICAS)

ICAS is a national service that supports people who want to make a complaint about their NHS Care or treatment. Your local ICAS service can be found on SEAP – 01579 345193

Please Follow This Link

However, if you feel you cannot raise your complaint with us, or you are dissatisfied with the response received from us, you can contact any of the following  bodies:

COMPLAINING TO OTHER AUTHORITIES

OMBUDSMAN

As a last resort, if you are not happy with the response from this practice, you can refer your complaint to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman who investigates complaints about the NHS in England. You can call the Ombudsman’s Complaints Helpline on 0345 015 4033 or Following the Link

or Textphone (Minicom): 0300 061 4298

CONTACTING THE CARE QUALITY COMMISSION

If you have a genuine concern about a staff member or regulated activity carried on by this Practice then you can contact the Care Quality Commission on 03000 616161, or alternatively visit the following website Link

View our full Privacy Notice Here

All GP Practices are required to declare the mean earnings (e.g. average pay) for GPs working to deliver NHS services to patients at each practice.

The average pay for GPs working in Southover Medical Practice in the last financial year was £68,428 before tax and National Insurance. This is for 3 full time GPs, 3 part time GPs and 2 locum GPs who worked for the practice for more than 6 months.

Aims and Objectives

This medical practice consists of dedicated and professional employees. We aim to provide medical care and treatment of consistently high quality for all patients and only provide services that meet patients’ needs and wishes. We aim to make care and treatment as comfortable as possible.

The purpose of Southover Medical Practice is the management of patients who are ill or believe themselves to be ill, with conditions from which recovery is generally expected, for the duration of that condition, including relevant health promotion advice and referral as appropriate, reflecting patient choice wherever practicable. It also includes the general management of patients who are terminally ill and management of chronic disease in the manner determined by the practice, in discussion with the patient and their relatives or carers as appropriate.

The Practice’s priority is to provide the highest standard of clinical care to patients registered with the Practice, ensuring we work collaboratively with other healthcare providers and support organisations, to enable more of our patients to be treated in a primary care setting, closer to home.

We aim:

• To understand the expectations of our patients
• To motivate and invest in our team and acknowledge their value

• To encourage all team members to participate in achieving our aims and objectives
• To clearly set and monitor targets in all areas

Our objectives

The objectives of the practice are to deliver a service of high standard in line with professional standards and:

• To be accountable for individual and team performance
• To support each other in achieving patient expectations
• To maintain the highest professional and ethical standards
• To rapidly respond to the needs of our team and our patients
• To ensure our staff are trained and competent through investment and personal development
• To ensure that patients are treated with honesty and integrity, in complete confidence and with the utmost discretion

Consultations

All consultations are carried out with patients (and their families/carers if appropriate), by qualified personnel in the privacy of the consultation room. Records of all consultations and treatments are kept electronically within the patients notes.

All patients wishing to register with Southover Medical Practice will be asked to complete the new patient questionnaire which informs the practice of past health and present lifestyle. This enables us to better meet a patient’s medical needs until medical notes arrive from the previous surgery.

We care about providing the right treatment to patients, so treatment and procedures are only carried out after fully discussing the benefits and risks with the patient. Patients have the right to ask questions regarding their care at any time.

Patients have the right to make their own decisions regarding medical treatment and care. This practice operates a consent policy, which will be issued on request at any time for the patient to read and understand prior to proceeding with any treatment. Consent to treatment must always be given freely and voluntarily by a person capable of making decisions regarding the treatment.

The privacy and dignity of patients is respected at all times. If a chaperone is required during a consultation or examination, this will clearly be recorded in the patient notes.

Services provided

Southover Medical Practice’s  regulated activities are:

• Diagnostic and screening procedures
• Treatment of disease, disorder or injury
• Surgical procedures
• Maternity and midwifery services
• Family planning

The full range of services provided (including referrals) is:

• A full range of General Medical Services
• Ante-natal Care
• Anticoagulant Service
• Baby Clinic & immunisation
• Blood Pressure Reviews
• Cervical Cytology
• Child health surveillance
• Childhood developmental checks, vaccinations and immunisations
• Contraceptive services
• Dietetics
• Disease management services including Asthma, Diabetes, Hypertension, Coronary Heart Disease and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
• District Nurse, Health Visiting and Midwifery Services
• Dressings
• Ear Syringing
• Flu Clinics
• Health promotion services for young people and adults of all ages.
• Immunisations
• Maternity Medical Services
• Minor surgery services
• New patient consultations
• Obstetrics services
• Phlebotomy
• Removal of Stitches
• Smoking Cessation Service
• Travel and other immunisations
• Warfarin Monitoring

Services are provided to the whole of the population and Southover Medical Practice  does not discriminate against individuals or groups on any grounds. The Practice is committed to developing and maintaining a safe and secure environment, for its patients, staff and visitors and has a duty to take all reasonable steps to protect and support its staff.

Violent and abusive behaviour includes bullying and or harassment of any description. Violent or abusive behaviour by patients, visitors or staff is not tolerated and decisive action will be taken to protect staff, patients and visitors.

Health and social care services in Devon and Cornwall have developed a system to share
patient data efficiently and quickly and, ultimately, improve the care you receive.
This shared system is called the Devon and Cornwall Care Record.
It’s important that anyone treating you has access to your shared record so they have all the
information they need to care for you. This applies to your routine appointments and also in
urgent situations such as going to A&E, calling 111 or going to an out-of-hours appointment.
It’s also quicker for staff to access a shared record than to try to contact other staff by phone
or email.
Only authorised health and care staff can access the Devon and Cornwall Care Record and
the information they see is carefully checked so that it relates to their job. Also, systems do
not share all your data – just data that services have agreed is necessary to include.
For more information about the Devon and Cornwall Care Record, please go to
https://www.devonandcornwallcarerecord.nhs.uk

The NHS belongs to the people, it is here to :

• improve our health and well-being
• aid us to keep mentally and physically well
• to help us get better when we are ill
• when we cannot fully recover, to stay as well as we can to the end of our lives providing care and compassion.

The NHS is founded on a common set of principles and values that bind together the communities and people it serves, patients and public, and the staff who work for it.

This Constitution establishes the principles and values of the NHS in England. It sets out rights to which patients, public and staff are entitled, and pledges which the NHS is committed to achieve, together with responsibilities which the public, patients and staff over to one another to ensure the NHS operates fairly and effectively. All NHS bodies and private and third sector providers supplying NHS services will be required by law to take account of the constitution in their decisions and actions.

The constitution will be renewed every 10 years, with the involvement of the public, patients and staff. It will be accompanied by the handbook to the NHS constitution, to mean you’d at least every three years.

To view the NHS Constitution in a new window please click on the link Here