Practice Policies & Patient Information
Accessing someone else’s information
Accessing someone else’s information
As a parent, family member or carer, you may be able to access services for someone else. We call this having proxy access. We can set this up for you if you are both registered with us.
To requests proxy access:
- collect a proxy access form from reception from 10am to 6pm
Linked profiles in your NHS account
Once proxy access is set up, you can access the other person’s profile in your NHS account, using the NHS App or website.
The NHS website has information about using linked profiles to access services for someone else.
Care Quality Commission
The CQC is the regulator for all health and social care services in England. Their job is to check whether hospitals, care homes, GPs, dentists and services in your home are meeting national standards.
The CQC does this by inspecting services and publishing their findings, helping people to make choices about the care they receive.
For further information about the CQC please click here www.cqc.org.uk/content/about-us
Herrington Medical Centre is registered with the CQC, our inspection day is Tuesday 19th January 2016.
Comments, Complaints and Suggestions
We aim to offer a friendly, personal, comprehensive and high standard of family health care to all our patients. We always welcome your feedback and value your comments and suggestions. Please get in touch via our online form or by telephone and let us know your thoughts. We endeavour to listen to your comments and act appropriately on the constructive feedback to deliver the best for you and your family.
Complaints Procedure
If you have a complaint or concern about the service you have received from the doctors or any of the staff working in this practice, please let us know. We operate a practice complaints procedure as part of the NHS system for dealing with complaints. Our complaints system complies with national standards.
How to complain
Most problems can be sorted out easily and quickly, often at the time they arise and with the person concerned. If your problem cannot be resolved in this way, we would ask you let us know as soon as possible, and if this is not possible then within 6 months of the incident.
Complaints should be addressed to the Practice Manager, Lorraine Corkain, or alternatively we can arrange an appointment to discuss your concerns. Lorraine will explain the complaints procedure to you and ensure the matter is resolved promptly. You will find a link to the complaints form.
Complaints Form (herringtonmc.nhs.uk)
How we will deal with your complaint
We will acknowledge your complaint in writing within 3 working days of receipt.
We will aim to resolve your complaint within 10 working days. If this cannot be achieved we will keep you informed of the likely timescale.
When we investigate your complaint we will;
- Find out what happened and what went wrong
- Make it possible to discuss the problem with those involved, if you would like this
- Make sure you receive an explanation and apology, if appropriate
- Take steps to ensure the problem does not happen again
Complaining on behalf off someone else
Please note that we adhere strictly to the rules of medical confidentiality. If you are complaining on behalf of someone else, we need to know that you have their permission to do so.
Complaining to the clinical commissioning group
We hope that you will contact the practice in the first instance if you have a problem, however if you feel you cannot do this or you are dissatisfied with the outcome of our investigation you can contact the CCG; Risk and Complaints Manager, Pemberton House, Colima Avenue, Sunderland Enterprise Park, Sunderland, SR5 3BX
You may also wish to contact the Patients Advice and Liaison Service on free phone 0800 731 2326.
GP Earnings
All GP practices are required to declare the mean earnings (eg average pay) for GPs working to deliver NHS services to patients at each practice
However it should be noted that the prescribed method for calculating earnings is potentially misleading. It takes no account of how much time
doctors spend working in the practice and should not be used to form any judgement about GP earnings nor, to make any comparison with any
other practice.
The average pay for GPs working at Herrington Medical Centre in the last financial year was £102,361 before tax and national insurance
This is for 2 full time and 3 part time GPs who were working at the practice for six months or more.
Privacy Notice (routine care and referrals)
When registering for NHS care, all patients who receive NHS care are registered on a national database, the database is held by NHS Digital, a national organisation which has legal responsibilities to collect NHS data.
For further information relating to the information the NHS holds about you please see Privacy Notice for Direct Care January2024
Privacy Statement/Policy
This GP Practice, as the data controller may collect personal information from visitors to this site. This will not include any information that can be used to identify any individual. This information is used only to respond to enquiries, monitor site usage and to enhance the use of certain technologies – such as activity based information. Cookies and logging of IP addresses are used to enable the GP Practice to monitor site traffic and repeat visitor statistics. The GP Practice will at all times comply with the requirements of the Data Protection Act 1998.
Data Protection Officer Contact: stsft.dposunderlandpractices@nhs.net
If you are requesting a subject access request, please contact the practice directly and not use the DPO email address.
View our full Privacy Policy here.
The National Diabetes Audit (NDA)
This practice is taking part in the National Diabetes Audit (NDA)
The NDA collects information about diabetes care from GP practices and hospitals and is used to help the NHS to improve care for patients with diabetes.
It is managed by the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC), working with Diabetes UK and Public Health England.
The information that the audit collects is controlled by law and strict rules of confidentiality.
The NDA only uses information about your diabetes care that is already recorded. For example, type of diabetes, latest blood pressure result and results of HbA1c, or eye screening tests. The NDA is not a research project. No extra blood tests, appointments or scans are needed.
You can choose not to take part if you have any concerns
If you do not want your information to be used, please inform your receptionist, your GP or nurse. They will make sure this is noted on your medical records, so your information is not included. This will not affect your care in any way.
For further information, please see http://www.hscic.gov.uk/nda and diabetes.org.uk/Professionals/Resources/National-Diabetes-Audit/
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Visual and Audio Image Protocol
Please see our protocol covering photographing patients, or parts of them, transmitting said images; saving said images; video recording; audio recording
Website Privacy Policy
This GP Practice, as the data controller may collect personal information from visitors to this site. This information is used only to respond to enquiries, monitor site usage and to enhance the use of certain technologies – such as activity based information. Cookies and logging of IP addresses are used to enable the GP Practice to monitor site traffic and repeat visitor statistics. Statistics will not include information that can be used to identify any individual.
The GP Practice will at all times comply with the requirements of the Data Protection Act 1998.
Use of Personal Information Provided by the User
Where personal information (e.g. name, address, telephone number etc) is provided to the GP Practice via its website for whatever purpose (e.g. registration, survey, feedback), it is made clear to the individual what the information collected will be used for and who it will be provided to. The GP Practice will only use the information collected for the stated purpose.
At this current time, any personal information provided, is only used by the GP Practice. It will not sell, trade, provide or rent personal information to third parties. Specific personal information will be released where the NHS is required to do so by law, e.g. court order. Transfer of data will be done so on the express permission of the supplying individual.
When you submit personal information, you consent to our use of the information as set out in this privacy policy.
Scope of this Privacy Policy
This privacy policy only covers sites belonging to and operated by the GP Practice. Links within this site to other websites are not covered by this policy.
Changes to this Privacy Policy
The GP Practice may amend this policy from time to time. If substantial changes are made to the way in which the Council obtains and uses your personal information the website will show prominently any announcement to this effect.
Zero Tolerance Campaign
Our practice has signed up to the NHS Zero Tolerance Campaign which makes verbal abuse, threat and physical violence to all NHS staff unacceptable. Any such behaviour from any patients may result in their removal from our practice list.