Thorpewood Medical Group is committed to providing a safe, comfortable environment where patients and staff can be confident that best practice is being followed at all times and the safety of everyone is of paramount importance.

All patients are entitled to have a chaperone present for any consultation, examination or procedure where they consider one is required. The chaperone may be a family member or friend, but on occasions a formal chaperone may be preferred.

Patients are advised to ask for a chaperone if required, at the time of requesting an appointment, if possible, so that arrangements can be made and the appointment is not delayed in any way. The Healthcare Professional you are seeing, may also require a chaperone to be present for certain consultations.

Although we strive to provide the best service possible there may be times when you feel this has not happened. If you have any complaint about the service that you have received from the doctors or staff working for this practice, then you are entitled to ask for an explanation. The practice operates a Complaints Procedure as part of the NHS system for dealing with complaints which meets national criteria.

We hope that most problems can be sorted out easily and quickly, preferably at the time they arise and with the person concerned. When the issue cannot be resolved at this stage, please e-mail the Surgery nwicb.thorpewood@nhs.net or write to the surgery. State the exact nature of your complaint and ask for it to be forwarded to the Practice Manager. Based on demand, it will not be possible to just phone and demand to speak to the Manager. Upon receipt you will receive an acknowledgment and an investigation will commence. The Practice Manager will try to resolve the issue.

Having taken this step, your notification becomes a formal complaint.

What we shall do?

The practice shall acknowledge your complaint within three working days and aim to have looked into it within 21 working days of the date you raised it with us.  At this stage you should be offered an explanation or a meeting with the person(s) involved.  When the practice looks into your complaint it aims to:

• Ascertain the full circumstances of the complaint
• Make sure you receive an apology where this is appropriate.
• Identify what we can to make sure the problem does not happen again.

Complaining on behalf of someone else

We ensure strict adherence to the rules of medical confidentiality. If you are complaining on behalf of someone else, the practice will need to have their written permission for you to do so. A note signed by the person concerned will be required unless they are incapable of providing this due to illness or disability.

The practice management team hope that if you have a problem you will use the practice complaints procedure.

Should you feel you cannot raise your complaint with us, or you are dissatisfied with the response, you may contact any of the following:

NHS Complaints Advocacy Services, England

NHS Advocacy services can support you and talk you through the complaints procedure, helping with the correspondence and attending meetings. Services are based in each local council area.

To find your local service you can call them on 0300 330 5454.

POhWER (Independent Complaints and Advocacy Service – ICAS)

This is a national service that supports people who want to make a complaint about their NHS care of treatment. Further information can be found at:

Phone: 0300 456 2370
Minicom: 0300 456 2364
Fax: 0845 337 3050
Email: pohwer@pohwer.net  www.pohwer.net
Write: PO Box 14043, Birmingham  B6  9BL

NHS England

Phone: 0300 311 22 33
Email: england.contactus@nhs.net
Write: PO Box 16738, Redditch  B97 9PT

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman

If you are not happy with the response you have received about your complaint, you can refer it to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman who investigates complaints about the NHS in England. You can call the Ombudsman’s Complaints Helpline on:

Helpline: 0345 015 4033
Textphone (Minicom): 0300 061 4298
Fax: 0300 061 4000
Email: PHSO.enquiries@ombudsman.org.uk

Your information

What we do with your information

How we keep your information safe

Your information rights

It should be noted that the prescribed method for calculating earnings is potentially misleading because it takes no account of how much time doctors spend working in the practice and should not be used to form any judgement about GP earnings, nor to make any comparison with any other practice.

We use a processor, iGPR Technologies Limited (“iGPR”), to assist us with responding to report requests relating to your patient data, such as subject access requests that you submit to us (or that someone acting on your behalf submits to us) and report requests that insurers submit to us under the Access to Medical Records Act 1988 in relation to a life insurance policy that you hold or that you are applying for.

iGPR manages the reporting process for us by reviewing and responding to requests in accordance with our instructions and all applicable laws, including UK data protection laws.

The instructions we issue to iGPR include general instructions on responding to requests and specific instructions on issues that will require further consultation with the GP responsible for your care.

All GP practices are required to provide all their patients a named GP, who has overall responsibility for the care and support that our surgery provides to them.

All existing patients have been allocated a named GP and all new patients will be allocated a GP within 21 days of registering with the practice.

This does not mean that you have to see your named GP, you can see any GP in the practice as you currently do. The overall care of all our patients will still be offered through the whole team of clinicians and an appropriate appointment will be offered, to ensure best care is provided for your medical needs.

Thorpewood Medical Group takes privacy seriously and we want to provide you with information about your rights, who we share your information with and how we keep it secure.

Please use the links below to find more information about the practice and data protection.

Transparency

Telephone Recording

Case Finding (ECLIPSE)

Information Sharing Norfolk and Waveney

• Our Data Protection Videos
• Your Information
• Children and Young People
• What We Do with Your Information
• What Else Do We Use Your Information For?
• Secondary Use of Data
• Sharing When Required by Law
• Information Rights
• Case Finding and Profiling
• Norfolk Sharing Partners
• Information Technology
• Keeping Your Information Safe
• How Long Do We Keep Your Information?
• Our Use of Eclipse
• Norfolk Primary Care Networks
• Thorpewood Medical Group Processors
• iGPR

Purpose of this document

To provide guidance for the use of Facebook for Patients.

This policy provides guidelines about the appropriate use of Facebook as a communications tool by patients specifically relating to services provided by Thorpewood Medical Practice.

Introduction

• There are a large range of social media platforms available, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. The Surgery realises that many of our Patients use social media as a way to interact with others, find out information and leave feedback. In order to ensure the Surgery is able to communicate and engage with those who use social media as a form of communication, the Surgery hosts a Facebook page account. The Facebook page is managed and monitored by the Surgery management team.
• This policy provides guidelines about the appropriate use of social media as a communications tool This policy has been developed based on best practice from the NHS.

Scope

This policy applies to all Patients who interact with the Surgery Facebook pages or mention staff or services provided by Thorpewood Medical Practice in public posts Failure to use social media in accordance with this policy could result in action being taken relating to a review the patient’s relationship with the Surgery, which could ultimately end in termination of their relationship with the surgery..

Responsibilities

Senior Partner

The Senior Partner has overarching accountability for this policy and delegates responsibility for ensuring this policy is applied consistently and fairly, to the Partners and Practice Manager at the Surgery.

Practice Manager

The Practice Manager is responsible for ensuring a robust policy is in place for the use of Facebook and monitoring compliance with this policy.

Patients

• Are able to post comments, but these should be objective, any complaints should be made directly to the practice manager by contacting the surgery
• Please remember that whenever or however you may be using the Surgery Facebook page, as a patient we ask you to maintain standards of reasonable behaviour. Any breach of this such as inflammatory, derogatory, slanderous, or abusive statements may lead to action, such as review of registration or civil claim. Just as we do not tolerate bullying in real life, we will not tolerate it
• Will not be able to:
  • make appointments from this medium.
  • make formal complaints from this medium.
  • request prescriptions.
  • Have any personal response to a post.
• In the event of poor behaviours, you may be removed from the access list.

Surgery use of Facebook to support communications

The Surgery will use the following social media platform to  communicate with patients, the public, staff, and the media:

• Facebook

Our Facebook account will be monitored during the hours: 10:30 – 15:30, Monday – Friday, excluding public holidays. Occasionally we may cover events outside of these hours live on our platform.

From time-to-time social media services may be unavailable and we accept no responsibility for lack of service due to social media service downtime.

We may use some scheduling tools to help us ensure content is spread across the week. Our followers can expect between 1–5 posts a week. This may increase in the case of an emergency.

By sharing other social media users content our organisation does not endorse the information or others’ views of that organisation or individual. We aim to share information which adds to any debate or topic we are involved in.

Our Facebook content will cover some or all of the following:

• Alerts about new services or new initiatives, for example, new publications, videos on YouTube, blog posts or health
• Sharing content from organisations, such as other NHS organisations, the emergency services and public sector organisations
• Occasional live coverage of events

Discrimination, harassment, and ‘cyberbullying’

The Surgery supports a culture of inclusion and this should be respected. All Users are advised that they must refrain from any online behaviour which could be considered to be discriminatory, or which may constitute bullying or harassment. This includes, for example, making offensive comments relating to gender, gender reassignment, race (including nationality), disability, sexual orientation, religion/belief age, or any other protected equality and diversity characteristic (this is not an exhaustive list). Using Facebook to bully another individual (‘cyberbullying’) and posting images that are discriminatory or offensive, or links to such images are included in this notice, meaning to refrain from such behaviours.

Incidents of discrimination, bullying or harassment which take place via social media will be managed in line with relevant Surgery policies and/or legislation.

Note that a filter to block unpleasant language is in use.

If anyone has any concerns in this respect, they are encouraged to contact the Practice Manager.

Monitoring the use of Facebook

All users should be aware that Facebook is monitored by staff for mentions and comments relating to staff and services provided by Thropewood Medical Practice and where breaches of this policy are found, action may be taken against the perpetrator as described above. This may include reporting of offensive, inaccurate or slanderous comments being reported to Facebook.

The Surgery reserves the right to restrict or prevent access to the Thorpewood Medical Practice Facebook page

Thorpewood Medical Group Philosophy

Our aims are to offer the highest standard of health care and advice to our patients, within the resources available to us.

We have a team approach to patient care and endeavour to monitor the service provided to patients, to ensure that it meets current standards of excellence.

We are dedicated to ensure that Practice staff and Doctors are training to the highest level and to provide a simulating and rewarding environment, in which to work.

 Our Practice Charter

• You will be treated with courtesy and respect by all practice personnel and receive treatment on the basis of clinic need.
• To be able to have a friend or relative with you at consultations.
• To have active involvement with the development of your care plan.
• An on the day appointment with a Doctor or Nurse Practitioner will be available on the same day, if capacity allows.
• Routine appointments are available up to four weeks in advance.
• Our standard is to see 80% of patients within 20 minutes of their appointment time. If you have waited longer than this, please ask the receptionist for an explanation.
• We aim to answer the telephone within six rings. During busy times, you may be asked to hold in the queuing system.
• We aim to offer an appointment with a Practice Nurse, within seven days.
• Requests for repeat prescriptions will be dealt with within 48 hours, excluding weekends.
• All suggestions and comments about the service are welcome. Any concerns will be dealt with in a professional and efficient manner.
• We will try to make Thorpewood Medical Group as accessible as possible. If you have hearing, visual or physical difficulties, please notify a receptionist know so that we can enable you to fully use our services.

Patient’s Responsibilities

• If you are unable to attend for an appointment, please let us know, so we can offer it to someone else.
• If you are late for your appointment, you may be asked to rebook at another time. Try to let us know in advance if you are going to be unavoidably delayed, so that we can make alternative arrangements to help you.
• A home visit should only be requested for those who are unable to come to the surgery because of serious illness or infirmity. Please contact the surgery before 11:00 if possible.
• A same day appointment is for an urgent medical problem. You will be asked by the receptionist the reason for a same day appointment. Please let us know if you require a sick note.
• We would ask you to be patient if the Doctor is running late. This is often due to unforeseeable emergencies, please ask for an explanation from the receptionist. Notification of significant delays are placed on the television screens.
• Request a separate appointment for each patient that needs to be seen. This allows the Doctor enough time, to treat each patient with the time that they deserve. If you wish to talk to the Doctor about more than one problem, please request a double appointment.
• To tell staff if you are uncertain or do not understand any aspect of your care.
• Please act in a responsible and courteous manner whilst on the Practice premises, for the safety and comfort of others.
• Please treat all surgery staff, fellow patients, carers and visitors politely and with respect. The practice has a zero tolerance policy with regard to violence or verbal harassment, which will not be tolerated or accepted and patients may be asked to register at another surgery if this behaviour occurs.
• To inform the practice of any changes to name and/or contact details.

This Practice supports the Government’s Zero Tolerance Campaign. Violence and abuse is a growing concern. GPs and their staff have the right to care for others without fear of being attacked or abused. Violent patients will be reported to the police and struck off the practice list.

We ask that you treat your GP and their staff properly – without violence or abuse.