Our Mission
Our success is built upon a commitment of quality through a positive team, giving a proactive and flexible approach to provide our patients with a high quality service.
Our Values
– To uphold the integrity of the National Health Service and its values
– To mutually respect all as individuals regardless of age, race, colour, nationality, ethnic origin, creed, disability, sexual orientation, gender, marital or parental status, political belief or social or economic class, or any other criteria that cannot be shown to be properly justifiable
– To be a caring and supportive Surgery which ensures fairness and equality of opportunity in all our actions
– To maintain and promote a welcoming and positive approach in our attitude and outlook to all
– To work as cohesive teams to support each other
– To enable all staff to contribute to the life and work of the Surgery
– To develop our staff for the benefit of the Surgery and themselves
– To ensure our premises and any equipment remain compliant with national and local guidelines and that our staff will be qualified and trained to carry out their duties as per their job description
– The Surgery is based on Preston New Road and easily accessible for all our patients. Equipment is readily available to support patients with any specific needs
– All staff are competently trained and hold the relevant qualifications for their post. For example, relevant medical and nursing qualifications
– Training is provided to all staff and this is agreed annually through appraisal. Mandatory training is also provided every for specific areas such as Fire Awareness, Information Governance, Life Support and safeguarding
Practice Policies
Chaperone Policy
Limefield Surgery 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. You may want to bring a member of your family or a friend with you, but your GP will also ask a trained member of staff to be present as a chaperone during your examination.
Wherever possible we would ask you to make this request at the time of booking appointment so that arrangements can be made and your 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.
Your healthcare professional may also require a chaperone to be present for certain consultations in accordance with our chaperone policy.
Confidentiality
Any information discussed with any member of staff, whether this is a doctor, nurse or receptionist, will remain confidential. Without your permission, no information will be discussed with anyone including family members.
The only reason why we might want to consider passing on confidential information without your permission would be to protect either you or someone else from serious harm. If this is the case, we would always try to discuss this with you first.
If you have any worries or queries about confidentiality, please contact the surgery.
Medical Records
The practice complies with data protection and access to medical records legislation. Identifiable information about you will be shared with others in the following circumstances:
- To provide further medical treatment for you e.g. from district nurses and hospital services.
- To help you get other services e.g. from the social work department. This requires your consent.
- When we have a duty to others e.g. in child protection cases anonymised patient information will also be used at local and national level to help the Health Board and Government plan services e.g. for diabetic care.
If you do not wish anonymous information about you to be used in such a way, please let us know.
Reception and administration staff require access to your medical records in order to do their jobs. These members of staff are bound by the same rules of confidentiality as the medical staff.
Freedom of Information
Information about the General Practioners and the practice required for disclosure under this act can be made available to the public. All requests for such information should be made to the practice manager.
Access to Records
In accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018 and Access to Health Records Act, patients may request to see their medical records. Such requests should be made through reception, we require something in writing either a letter or email. There is no fee for this. No information will be released without the patient consent unless we are legally obliged to do so.
GDPR
General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR)
Limefield Surgery has a legal duty to explain how we use any personal information we collect about you as a registered patient at the practice. Staff at this practice maintains records about your health and the treatment you receive in electronic and paper format.
What information do we collect about you?
We will collect information such as personal details, including name, address, next of kin, records of appointments, visits, telephone calls, your health records, treatment and medications, test, results, X-rays etc and any other relevant information to enable us to deliver effective medical care.
How we will use your information
Your data is collected for the purpose of providing direct patient care: however we can disclose this information if it is required by law, if you give consent or if it is justified in the public interest. The practice may be requested to support research: however we will always gain your consent before sharing your information with medical research databases such as the Clinical Practice Research Datalink and QResearch or others when the law allows.
In order to comply with its legal obligations, this practice may send data to NHS Digital when directed by the Secretary of State for Health under the Health and Social Care Act 2012. Additionally, this practice contributes to national clinical audits and will send the data that is required by NHS Digital when the law allows. This may include demographic data such as date of birth, and information about your health which is recorded in coded form: for example the clinical code for diabetes or blood pressure.
Processing your information in this way and obtaining your consent ensures we comply with Articles 6(1)(c), 6(1)(e) and 9(2)(h) of the GDPR.
How we contact/inform patients
Limefield Surgery contacts patients/carers/parents/guardians by phone letter and text in accordance with the health and social care act 2012.
Article 6(e) Public Task: the processing is necessary for you to perform a task in the public interest or for your official functions, and the task or function has a clear basis in law.
Article 9(h) for the purposes of preventative or occupational medicine, for the assessment of working capacity of the employee, medical diagnosis, the provision of health or social care or treatment or the management of health or social care.
Maintaining confidentiality and accessing your records
We are committed to maintaining confidentiality and protecting the information we hold about you. We adhere to General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the NHS Codes of Confidentiality and Security, as well as guidance issued by the Informations Commissioner’s Office (ICO). You have a right to access the information we hold about you, and if you would like to access this information please contact the surgery. Furthermore, should you identify any inaccuracies you have a right to have the inaccurate data corrected.
Risk Stratification
Risk stratification is a mechanism used to identify and subsequently manage those patients deemed as being at high risk of requiring urgent or emergency care. Usually this includes patients with long term conditions e.g cancer. Your information is collected by a number of sources, including Limefield Surgery; this information is processed electronically and given a risk score which is relayed to your GP who can then decide on any necessary actions to ensure that you receive the most appropriate care.
Invoice Validation
Your information may be shared if you have received treatment to determine which Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) is responsible for paying for your treatment. This information may include your name, address and treatment date. All of this information is held securely and confidentially; it will not be used for any other purpose or shared with any third parties.
Opt-outs
You have a right to object to your information being shared. Should you wish to opt out of data collection please contact a member of staff who will explain how can opt out and prevent the sharing of your information; this is done by registering a Type 1 opt-out, preventing your information from being shared outside this practice.
Retention Periods
In accordance with the NHS Codes of Practice for Records Management, your healthcare records will be retained for 10 years after death, or if a patient emigrates, for 10 years after the date of emigration. These will be held at Primary Care Support England.
What to do if you have any questions
Should you have any questions about our privacy policy or the information we hold about you, you can:
- Contact the practice’s data controller via email at limefield.general@nhs.net. GP Practices are data controllers for the data they hold about their patients.
- Write to the data controller at Limefield Surgery, 293-295 Preston New Road, Blackburn, BB2 6PL
- Ask to speak to the practice manager Mark Bolton, or their deputy Ashlie Allison/Jessica Houghton.
Complaints
In the unlikely event that you are unhappy with any element of our data-processing methods you have the right to lodge a complaint with the ICO. For further details visit ico.org.uk and select ‘Raising a concern’.
Changes to our privacy policy
We regularly review our privacy policy and any updates will be published on our website, in our newsletter, and on posters to reflect the changes. This policy is to be reviewed on 06/06/2024.
GP Earnings
All GP practices are required to declare the mean earnings for GPs working to deliver NHS services to patients at each practice.
The mean earnings for GPs working in Limefield Surgery in the financial year ended 31st March 2022 was £79,228 before deduction of employee’s superannuation contributions, tax and National Insurance. This is the average pay for the 1 full-time GP who worked in the practice for more than 6 months during that year.
Zero Tolerance Violence Policy
The NHS operate a zero tolerance policy with regard to violence and abuse and the practice has the right to remove violent patients from the list with immediate effect in order to safeguard practice staff, patients and other persons.
Violence in this context includes actual or threatened physical violence or verbal abuse which leads to fear for a person’s safety. In this situation we will notify the patient in writing of their removal from the list and record in the patient’s medical records the fact of the removal and the circumstances leading to it.
Our practice staff shall always show respect and politeness when communicating with patients and we respectfully request that patients do the same.
