There may be instances where we may offer you an appointment via telephone or video consultation. Your personal/confidential patient information shared on the consultation will be safeguarded in the same way it would with any other consultation with relevant information added to your patient record.
From 4th April 2024 all incoming and outgoing telephone calls including consultations are not recorded. We plan to reinstate call recording for incoming calls only when our telephone service provider X-on enables this. Prior to 4th April 2024 all incoming and outgoing telephone calls were recorded for training, monitoring and clinical safety purposes by the practice only. Patient consent to such recording is presumed unless the patient requests otherwise. Recordings will be stored as part of the NHS Record Management Code of Practice (20121, updated 2023 for a period of 3 years). If the recording is to be used for any other reason other than those noted above, then further permission will be required.
Sometimes we ask patients to send us photographs if we feel able to diagnose conditions remotely, or to provide a record of an issue. This is done via the secure online NHS approved platform AccuRx and we state clearly each time that we do not accept pictures of intimate areas. Still images or photographs are stored securely as part of your patient record in line with NHS Records Management Code of Practice (2021). If recordings or still images obtained are no longer needed (e.g. because what is recorded is adequately described in the clinical notes) then the recording/images will be confidentially and securely destroyed in line with the NHS Records Management Code of Practice (2021).