Confidentiality means you can expect to have your personal information kept private and to know what is being shared, who with and why.
You will be asked questions about your health, your life experiences and your social situation – information that is relevant and necessary to provide mental health care to you.
Psychiatric assessments can involve sharing personal, and at times sensitive, information. You must provide accurate information, but you can choose if, and when, you share information about more personal or traumatic experiences.
The General Medical Council recommends that when care is given by someone other than the person’s usual GP, consent should be sought to obtain the person’s medical history and list of medication. You will be asked whether you consent to Frith Psychiatry requesting a summary care record from your GP.
You will also be asked whether you consent to Frith Psychiatry sharing information with your GP, so that they have a summary of the assessment and any treatment recommendations. You can discuss what information is shared and make some choices about this.
Electronic medical records will be kept securely for the recommended retention period and then disposed of securely, in accordance with the law.
Please be aware that confidentiality is not an absolute right. Information can be disclosed, without the person’s consent or even knowledge, in some rare circumstances. That might include an order from a judge or court, or when disclosure is judged necessary to protect you, a child or society from serious harm.
Information will not be shared with third parties (such as solicitors, employers, insurers or relatives) without your consent or an appropriate legal basis.
Information is usually collected and stored for the purposes of direct clinical care. Less commonly it may be used for another purpose, such as service evaluation, clinical audit or regulator inspection. If information is used for audit, for example, then personally identifiable information is removed.
If you have any queries about how your information will be kept or shared, please do not hesitate to ask.
Please read this guidance alongside Frith Psychiatry’s Privacy Policy.
