Health Records & Privacy Policy

Privacy Statement: How We Use Your Health Records 

Why we collect information about you 

The physiotherapists caring for you keep records about your care and treatment. These help ensure that you receive the best possible care from us. These are held on a computer (electronic records). The information can include: 

  • Basic details about you, such as name, address, gender, email address, telephone number and date of birth 
  • Details of contacts we have had with you, such as clinic visits 
  • Notes and reports about your care and treatment 

How your records are used  

Your records are used to guide and administer the care you receive. They ensure that: 

  • The professionals involved have accurate and up-to-date information on your needs and future care requirements 
  • There is a good basis for assessing the quality of care you receive 
  • We can work effectively with others providing you with care 
  • Your concerns can be properly investigated, should you need to complain 

Your information may also be used anonymously (by removing any details that could identify you) to help us: 

  • Review and monitor the overall quality of care we provide, to make sure it is of the highest standard 
  • Make sure that our services are meeting patient’s needs 
  • Train and educate our staff 

In some situations, person identifiable information may be used for important or essential NHS purposes, such as research and auditing. Physiotherapy Matters will only use data provided by our patients and clients for professional purposes, all data we hold is in General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). All data we obtain is processed fairly and lawfully for specific purpose. Patient or clients personal information is never disclosed to third parties, unless the patient or client has given explicit consent or where we are legally obliged. 

Your confidentiality 

The confidentiality of your health records is protected by law. Your records are stored securely and only authorised people are able to access them. 

All reasonable steps will be taken to protect the confidentiality and security of your personal information, and to keep personal information accurate and, where necessary, up to date. 

Physiotherapy Matters have a Records Retention, Destruction and Archiving Policy in place and will take all reasonable steps to ensure data only retained for the duration of the purpose for which it was obtained. Where requested, Physiotherapy Matters will delete personal information from current operational systems where it is no longer required, upon request Physiotherapy Matters can rectify records if there is valid reason. In some cases Physiotherapy Matters may be required to hold some details about you after your treatment with us has ended, for example for legal audit and regulatory purposes relating to health care. 

Disclosure of your personal data 

In the usual course of our business we may disclose your personal data (to the extent necessary) to certain third party organisations that we use to support the delivery of our services. This may include the following: 

  • business partners, suppliers and sub-contractors for the performance of any contract we enter into with you, 
  • organisations providing IT systems support and hosting in relation to the IT systems on which your information is stored, 
  • delivery companies for the purposes of transportation, 
  • third party service providers for the purposes of storage of information e.g. exercise software programme and confidential destruction; 
  • third party marketing companies for the purpose of sending marketing emails, subject to obtaining appropriate consent. 

Where a third party data processor is used, we ensure that they operate under contractual restrictions with regard to confidentiality and security, in addition to their obligations under Data Protection Laws. 

Access to your own health records 

Under the Freedom of Information Act and GDPR regulation, you have the legal right to obtain the information that Physiotherapy Matters holds about you.  

To access your own health care records, requests should be made to us in writing to: 

Physiotherapy Matters Ltd 
Arden House,
Regent Centre,
Gosforth,
Newcastle upon Tyne,
NE3 3LU

For further information please ask a member of staff.  

Further Information 

Physiotherapy Matters may occasionally contact you with information regarding the clinic, such as new services we offer, but Physiotherapy Matters will never provide your details to a third party marketing company and all reasonable steps to ensure that any data held is adequate, relevant and not excessive for the purpose for which it is intended. 

If at any time you would like to know more about how we use your information and how we maintain your confidentiality, you can ask the person in charge of your care or our Business Support Manager.

No matter whether your condition was caused by a sport, work accident or otherwise, we welcome the chance to serve you.

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