Confidentiality & 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.
In accordance with recent GDPR legislation, Loughview Medical Centre have updated their Privacy Policy. To view this policy, please click the link below.
Photographic ID must be presented if requesting or collecting personal data.
Practice Privacy Policy
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 1998 and Access to Health Records Act, patients may request to see their medical records. Such requests should be made through the Practice Manager and may be subject to an administration charge. No information will be released without the patient consent unless we are legally obliged to do so.
Complaints
We make every effort to give the best service possible to everyone who attends our practice.
However, we are aware that things can go wrong resulting in a patient feeling that they have a genuine cause for complaint. If this is so, we would wish for the matter to be settled as quickly, and as amicably, as possible.
To pursue a complaint please contact the practice manager who will deal with your concerns appropriately. Further written information is available regarding the complaints procedure from reception.
If you feel that your complaint has not been dealt with in full you may contact the Health & Social Care Board Telephone 0300 555 0115.
Alternatively you may contact the Patient & Client Council, telephone 0800 917 0222 or the NI Public Services Ombudsman, Telephone 028 9023 3821, Freephone 0800 34 34 24 or Textphone 028 9089 7789.
Please see copy of our complaints procedure below:
Loughview Medical Centre Complaints Procedure
Prescribing Policy
- Sleeping Tablets are not prescribed routinely, never long-term and will not be prescribed repeatedly
- Diazepam and Oxazepam use is avoided at all times and prescribed very rarely in cases of mental health illness, and under strict supervision and continuous review.
- Painkillers are prescribed only for a specific reason, never long-term unless a serious underlying illness exists, and never as effervescent or dissolving form.
- Codeine based painkillers such as Kapake or Solpadol are not routinely prescribed.
- Anti-depressant medication will only be prescribed in cases of mental health illness and following consultation with a GP.
Zero Tolerance Policy
Loughview Medical Centre operate a zero tolerance policy with regard to violence and abuse and have the right to remove violent patients from our 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.