This privacy notice explains why our practice collects information about you and how that information may be used and shared.

The employees and owner of the practice use electronic and paper records to create and maintain an in-depth history of your dental treatment at the practice and elsewhere, to help ensure you receive the best possible dental care in the future.  Anyone who accesses your data within the practice can be identified and what they have accessed.

We comply with Data Protection Act in ensuring your personal information is as confidential and secure as possible.

Why we collect information about you

Dental professionals who provide you with care are required by law to maintain records about your health and any treatment or care you have received. These records help to provide you with the best possible dental care.

We collect and hold data for the sole purpose of providing appropriate dental services to our patients. In carrying out this role we may collect information about you which helps us respond to your queries or secure specialist services. We may keep your information in written form and/or in digital form. The records may include basic details about you, such as your name and address.
They may also contain more sensitive information about your health and also information such as outcomes of needs assessments.

Details we collect about you

The Dental professionals who provide you with care maintain records about your health and any treatment or care you have received previously These records help us to provide you with the best possible dental care.

Records which this Practice may hold about you may include the following:

  • Details about you, such as your address and next of kin
  • Any contact the practice has had with you, such as appointments, clinic visits, emergency appointments etc
  • Notes and reports about your health
  • Details about your treatment and care
  • Results of investigations such as laboratory tests, x-rays etc
  • Relevant information from other health professionals, relatives or those who care for you

How we keep your information confidential and safe

Everyone working for Dental Spa Solutions is subject to the Common Law Duty of Confidence. Information provided in confidence will only be used for the purposes advised with consent given by the patient, unless there are other circumstances covered by the law. The NHS Digital Code of Practice on Confidential Information applies to all our staff and they are required to protect your information, inform you of how your information will be used, and allow you to decide if and how your information can be shared. All our staff are expected to make sure information is kept confidential and receive annual training on how to do this.

Your dental records may be electronic, on paper or a mixture of both, and we use a combination of working practices and technology to ensure that your information is kept confidential and secure. Your records are backed up securely in line with standard procedures. We ensure that the information we hold is kept in secure locations, is protected by appropriate security and access is restricted to authorised personnel.

We also make sure external data processors that support us are legally and contractually bound to operate and prove security arrangements are in place where data that could or does identify a person are processed.

We are committed to protecting your privacy and will only use information collected lawfully in accordance with

  • Data Protection Act 1998
  • General Data Protection Regulation 2018
  • Human Rights Act
  • Common Law Duty of Confidentiality
  • NHS Codes of Confidentiality and Information Security
  • Health and Social Care Act 2015

We maintain our duty of confidentiality to you at all times. We will only ever use or pass on information about you if others involved in your care have a genuine need for it. We will not disclose your information to any third party without your permission unless there are exceptional circumstances (i.e. life or death situations), or where the law requires information to be passed on.

How we use your information

Improvements in information technology are also making it possible for us to share data with other healthcare providers with the objective of providing you with better care. You can object to your personal information being shared with other health care providers but if this limits the treatment that you can receive then the Dental professional will explain this to you at the time.

To ensure you receive the best possible care, your records are used to facilitate the care you receive. Information held about you may be used to help protect the health of the public and to help us manage appropriately.

Clinical Audit

Information may be used for clinical Audit to monitor the quality of the service provided. Some of this information may be held centrally and used for statistical purposes. Where we do this we take strict measures to ensure that individual patients cannot be identified.

Safeguarding

To ensure that adult and children’s safeguarding matters are managed appropriately, access to identifiable information will be shared in some limited circumstances where it’s legally required for the safety of the individuals concerned.

Data Retention

We will approach the management of patient records in line with the Records Management NHS Code of Practice for Health and Social Care and General Dental Council guidelines which sets the required standards of practice in the management of records for those who work within or under contract to NHS organisations in England, based on current legal requirements and professional best practice. We deal with our Private and NHS patients in the same manner.

Who are our partner organisations?

We may also have to share your information, subject to strict agreements on how it will be used, with the following organisations to ensure continuity of care and NHS remuneration purposes:

  • NHS Trusts and commissioning bodies
  • Independent Contractors such as dental laboratories
  • Private Sector Care Providers
  • Social Care Services
  • NHS Business Services Authority
  • Police
  • Fire and rescue services
  • Ambulance Trust

We will never share your information outside of health partner organisations without your explicit consent unless there are exceptional circumstances such as when the health or safety of others is at risk, where the law requires it or to carry out a statutory function.

This means you will need to express an explicit wish not to have your information shared with the other NHS organisations; otherwise they will be automatically shared. We are required by law to report certain information to the appropriate authorities. This is only provided after formal permission has been given by a qualified health professional. There are occasions when we must pass on information, such as reporting a death to NPSA, highlighting a safeguarding issue or reporting any incident that has had an impact on patient safety, or had the potential to have an impact . Our guiding principle is that we are holding your records in strictest confidence.

Your right to withdraw consent for us to share your personal information (Opt-Out)

If you are happy for your data to be extracted and used for the purposes described in this fair processing notice then you do not need to do anything. If you do not want your information to be used for any purpose beyond providing your care you can choose to opt-out. If you wish to do so, please let us know so we can code your record appropriately. We will respect your decision if you do not wish your information to be used for any purpose other than your care but in some circumstances we may still be legally required to disclose your data.

Opt-Out

If you do not want information that identifies you to be shared outside the practice, for purposes beyond your direct care, you can register a Opt-Out. This prevents your personal confidential information from being used other than in particular circumstances required by law, such as a public health emergency.

If you wish to discuss or change your opt-out preferences at any time please contact the Practice Manager.

Access to your information

Under the new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) 2018 everybody has the right to see, or have a copy, of data we hold that can identify you, with some exceptions. You do not need to give a reason to see your data.

If you want to access your data you must make the request in writing. Under special circumstances, some information may be withheld. If you wish to have a copy of the information we hold about you, please contact the Practice Manager.

Change of Details

It is important that you tell the person treating you if any of your details such as your name or address have changed or if any of your details are incorrect, at your next visit we will ask you to complete a new medical history form to ensure our records are accurate and up to date. The form will also ask for your consent for us to contact you by email or text message.

Mobile Numbers & Email Addresses

If you provide us with your mobile phone number, we may use this to send you reminders about your appointments. Please let us know if you do not wish to receive reminders on your mobile.  In addition to text message reminders we may contact you by email to inform you of emergency arrangements during a holiday period. We need to know your mobile number, if you change it, you need to inform the practice straight away. We do our best to ensure information is secure. The same applies to email addresses and correspondence address. If you fail to inform the practice of a change of your mobile number, you may then make the process less secure and the practice would not be in a position to take liability for this. If you provide us with your email address, we may use this to send you reminders to make an appointment for a review. Please let us know if you do not wish to receive correspondence by email.

Notification

Dental Spa Solutions is registered with the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) to describe the purposes for which they process personal and sensitive information. Our Registration Number is Z5488022

We are a registered Data Controller and our registration can be viewed online in the public register at: http://ico.org.uk/what_we_cover/register_of_data_controllers

Complaints

If you have concerns or are unhappy about any of our services, please contact the Practice Manager.

For independent advice about data protection, privacy and data-sharing issues, you can contact: The Information Commissioners Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF - Phone: 0303 123 1113 Website: www.ico.gov.uk

Further Information

Further information about the way in which the NHS uses personal information and your rights in that respect can be found here: https://www.england.nhs.uk/contact-us/privacy/privacy-notice/your-information/

The NHS Care Record Guarantee

The NHS Care Record Guarantee for England sets out the rules that govern how patient information is used in the NHS, what control the patient can have over this, the rights individuals have to request copies of their data and how data is protected under the Data Protection Act 1998. http://systems.digital.nhs.uk/infogov/links/nhscrg.pdf

The NHS Constitution

The NHS Constitution establishes the principles and values of the NHS in England. It sets out the rights patients, the public and staff are entitled to. These rights cover how patients access health services, the quality of care you’ll receive, the treatments and programmes available to you, confidentiality, information and your right to complain if things go wrong.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-nhs-constitution-for-england

Reviews of and Changes to our Privacy Notice

We will keep our Privacy Notice under regular review. This notice was last reviewed in March 2018.