Data Protection versus Freedom of Information
and how it affects making an appointment

Both of these government led initiatives are very good in their own right but they don't come together very well when a patient tries to make an appointment.

Unless a patient makes an appointment over the internet, a patients first point of contact is the receptionist, either in person or on the 'phone. The receptionists job is to find the patient the best appointment slot with the right clinician. The receptionists have a number of tools at their disposal to ensure they can do this.

However, very often they are told by the patient that their information is confidential and for the doctor only. This is both right and wrong. It is confidential but is not necessarily for the doctor only. We are dealing with up to 200 patient documents a day in one form or another, all of which has to be filed and put onto the patient records and/or typed and sent out. Obviously this is not done by the doctor. If it were, then they wouldn't have any time left for appointments. This is done by the receptionists and other members of staff who have to have access to the patient data.

For this reason, everyone (and we really do mean everyone) at this surgery has to sign a confidentiality agreement that binds us to the same level of confidentiality as the doctors. We are all bound by exactly the same rules. This even applies after a member of staff leaves this employment. In this sense it's probably akin to the Official Secrets Act. I.E. It's for life.

Our receptionists are tasked with making an appointment that is right for the patient. Believe it or not, that may not be with a doctor. All our doctors, nurses and other clinicians have specialist skills and our receptionists do their best to make an appointment with the right clinician. To be able to do this the patient does have to tell the receptionist what is wrong. This could save the patient time as it is possible that the doctor would refer them to the nurse/clinician which the receptionist may have done in the first place. It also saves us an appointment slot.

Further more, when appointments are in short supply, the receptionist may put the patient down for a 'phone call by the doctor. This is more often quicker than being seen and may mean that a visit to the surgery is unnecessary. On the opposite end of things it may get a ambulance called quicker than having to come to the surgery when a patient is more ill than they think they are.

For further information on how appointments work, please click here.