The Birmingham Circumcision Services will keep your medical records confidential and complies with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and Data Protection Act 2018.
We hold your personal information so that we can provide you with safe and appropriate treatment. We will also use your information to check and review the quality of the care we provide. This helps us to continuously improve our services to you.
The confidentiality of your information is very important to us and we comply with data protection legislations and medical confidentiality guidelines set out by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and the General Medical Council (GMC).
Information Held
Personal data about you and your child will be collected when you contact the Birmingham Circumcision Services. All patients will be registered on a secure system. We need to hold personal and clinical information to be able to provide patients with a high standard of care. This information can include:
- Name, date of birth, address, telephone number, email address, next of kin details
- Medical history, NHS GP details and contact preferences
- Records of consent to treatment
- Surgical procedure notes
- Information about your treatment that we have provided and its cost
- Notes of conversations or incidents that might occur for which a record needs to be kept
- Clinical photographs if relevant situations (additional consent required)
- Details of any complaints until they have been resolved
- Any correspondence relating to the patient from yourself or other health care professionals
Why do we collect your personal data?
As a medical practice we need to keep comprehensive and accurate information about you in order to provide you with safe appropriate treatment in a timely manner.
How we use your Information
We will use your information to provide you with the treatment you have requested. We will use your details to contact you to arrange appointments, send documentation, appointment reminders, follow up consultations and to advise on changes to services. We may need to contact you to reschedule or cancel your appointment.
We may contact you a few weeks after the procedure to ensure satisfactory recovery and to obtain feedback on the service you have received from the Birmingham Circumcision Services. You will have the opportunity to opt-out of any such feedback surveys.
We use information to check and review the quality of care we provide. This is called audit and clinical governance. This allows us to continually improve practice standards and the service we provide to our patients.
Financial Information
We hold information about the fees we have charged, the amounts you have paid and some payment details. We do not hold any bank or credit/debit card details.
Security of Personal Data
We adhere to strict security standards to prevent unauthorised access to your personal information once we have received it. Personal information is stored in secure manual filing unit. Your information can only be accessed by clinic staff who adhere to the practice data protection policies and are aware of their legal responsibility to maintain confidentiality.
The clinic is located within an NHS GP practice. This is a secure premises with CCTV and alarm systems in place. These measures are for the purposes of staff and patient safety and to maintain security of the practice premises.
Transmission of data and information via the website enquiry form is not a secure or encrypted transmission. Information and personal data may be lost, intercepted, lost, redirected, corrupted, changed and accessed by others.
Disclosure of Information
Your information is only used by staff working within the clinic. To provide proper and safe medical care we may need to disclose personal information about you, including to:
- Your GP
- Hospital / Hospital specialist (if required for emergency care)
- Regulatory bodies e.g. Care Quality Commission / General Medical Council
We will not disclose personal information to any third parties without obtaining your prior consent, unless we are required by law to do so. We will provide you with details of disclosure and you can request to be copied into the correspondence. Disclosure will take place on a ‘need-to-know’ basis and will be limited to the minimum amount necessary. You have the right to object to information being shared and the right to have any mistakes or errors corrected.
When required by law or a court order, personal data may have to be disclosed to a third party not connected with your health care. If there are any safeguarding concerns, we may need to share information to ensure those at risk are protected from the risk of harm. These circumstances are very rare and we do not need your consent or agreement to do this, although where possible, you will be informed. We would take legal advice before disclosing any data. Please speak with us if you have any concerns.
Requesting your consent under GDPR
We will always obtain written consent from both parents before performing the procedure (exceptions apply for single parents). This is in line with the General Medical Council and British Medical Association guidelines for Non-Therapeutic Male Circumcision.
In addition to this, we require your consent under GDPR to communicate with you by phone, email or post. You can choose how you would like us to communicate with you and you have the option to withdraw consent to that communication at any time.
Website Information
When you visit our website certain information is collected, including the number of visitors, browsing activity and pages viewed. This information is collected anonymously without identifying the user.
Parts of our website contain links to third party websites for your convenience and information. By using these links, you will leave our website. We are not responsible for the content and privacy practices of third-party websites.
Cookies and Internet Protocol (IP) logging
When visiting websites, certain information is recorded. When you visit our website, our server will record your computer’s IP address and the time and duration of your visit. This information is recorded anonymously and is stored using cookies. This information may be used to analyse website usage and to improve accessibility. We will not use it for any other purpose. You may disable the use of cookies in your Internet browser without affecting your use of our website.
Your Rights
- You have the right to object to information being disclosed. In certain situations, this may affect the care you receive. Please speak with us if you would like to discuss.
- You have a right to withdraw your consent at any time before the procedure is performed. You cannot withdraw consent retrospectively.
- You are not able to object when information is being disclosed to comply with a court order, legal requirement or for safeguarding reasons.
- You have the right to access the information we hold and to request a copy of it. A formal application must be submitted in writing to the Birmingham Circumcision Services.
- You have the right to have errors or mistakes corrected. Please speak to a member of staff.
- You have the right to complain about our how your personal information is used or any aspect of our Privacy Policy. Please speak with our team if you have any concerns.
Retention Period
Medical records will be kept in line with the law and national guidance.
