Freedom of Information

The FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT became law on the 30th November 2000. St Andrews Medical Centre conforms to the requirements of the Act and has produced a publication scheme in accordance with the Act. A copy of the Act is available on the Freedom of Information website: www.foi.nhs.uk

Confidentiality:

All our staff are bound by the same rules of confidentiality as the Doctors and Nurses. They all have a legal duty to maintain the highest level of confidentiality about patient information. This means in effect that no information will be divulged to a third party such as relatives, insurance companies or solicitors unless the patient has given us written permission to do so.

• This also applies to relatives or friends checking on appointment times.
• ​Asking for test results.
• Asking whether someone has attended the Practice for an appointment.
• No clinical messages will be left on an answering machine.

Although in most cases these would be innocent requests, we obviously do not know all our patients particular circumstances and we therefore have to ensure that patient confidentiality is not broken.

Unfortunately this will at times mean that the receptionists may appear to be withholding information but they are following guidelines laid down by the Department of Health and are not trying to be obstructive.

Your understanding of this matter would be very much appreciated. If you wish to discuss the above details please speak with the Practice Manager who will do his best to help you.