My Care Record

My Care Record

The people caring for you need access to your health and care record in order to make the best decisions about your diagnosis and treatment. For this to happen more quickly and to improve the care you receive, a new process has been put in place. With your permission, My Care Record will provide health and care professionals directly involved in your care, access to the most up-to-date information about you.

HOW WE USE YOUR INFORMATION

What is My Care Record?

In west Essex and east and north Hertfordshire, providers of health and social care services are working more closely together to better co-ordinate the delivery of care to people supported by local commissioners.

My Care Record is a programme which allows people to give health and care professionals their permission to access their medical records during their treatment.

The people caring for you need to access about your health and care record in order to make the best decisions about your diagnosis and treatment. This could include GPs, hospital-based clinicians, nurses, health visitors and social workers.

To enable this to happen more quickly and to improve the care you receive, a new process has been put in place. This will allow your information to be accessed by different health and care organisations, using existing computer systems.

This does not share your record with third party organisations, but provides health and care professionals, with your permission, access to view your information

Information will only be accessed with your permission and while you are receiving direct treatment by a health and care professional.

Initially, My Care Record will be hosted by the Princess Alexandra Hospital in their highly secure data centre.

What information will be made available?

The record accessed is your medical record. Examples of information that will be available include:

• Name, address, NHS Number and phone number
• Medications
• Test results and investigations
• Correspondence
• Clinical history
• Emergency department treatment
• Future and past appointments
• Health plans and alerts
• Mental health alerts and diagnoses
• Social care lead co-ordinator and your care plan.

Sensitive information, such as sexual health, will not be made available. This is based on a coding system within your GP record.

How is this information used?

The information available in the record from your care provider is in a chronological order so that your care provider can see a relevant history of your care. They will always update their own care record with any new information.  This helps them to make better decisions about your care. Access is only with your explicit permission.

The organisations that could be involved in the service are:

• GP practices in west Essex and east and north Hertfordshire
• Princess Alexandra Hospital Trust
• South Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust
• North Essex Partnership Foundation Trust
• Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust
• Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust
• East of England Ambulance
• IC24 (111 provider)
• Out of hours providers (such as PELC, HUC)
• Essex County Council and their care providers (such as Essex Cares)
• Hertfordshire County Council
• Other local hospitals (such as Addenbrooke’s, Whipps Cross and Broomfield)

You can tell your care provider if you don’t want them to make your information available by completing a form by asking your care provider for one. Your record will be edited and no information will be available to access.

Access to your information

My Care Record is simply a reflection of your individual records held by the organisations above and therefore you should contact them directly if you wish to have a copy of the information held about you. The contact details for each organisation’s Data Protection Officer or Team is below.

Contact details for data protection officers

For further information on My Care Record please visit www.mycarerecord.org.uk.