View Point Practice

• We will treat you as a person and not just a medical case.
  
  
• We will respect your dignity and listen to what you have to say.
  
  
• We will endeavour to give you your choice of doctor but you should be aware that in doing so it could increase the time it takes to see your preferred choice and that it may take several attempts when booking an appointment.
  
  
• We will maintain your confidentiality.
  
  
• We will release information to other helping and caring agencies or professionals on a need to know basis. We will release information to other bodies (eg employers, insurance companies, police) only with your express consent.
  
  
• We guarantee you will receive prompt emergency care at all times. You will receive an appointment for urgent problems the same day as requesting it.
  
  
• We try to explain what is wrong with you and what we propose to do about it in a way you can easily understand. Within the constraints of the NHS, we guarantee to obtain for you the best possible care when required from the rest of the Health Service and other caring agencies.
  
  
• We endeavour to ensure that when you visit the surgery you will not normally be kept waiting more than 30 minutes. Please remember that patients sometimes present problems that require more than the standard allotted time to deal with them.
  
  

COMPLAINTS AND SUGGESTIONS

We always try to offer the best service possible, but there may be times when you feel this has not been sufficient. We always take complaints seriously and act on them. If you wish to register a complaint please ask to speak to the practice manager or if you prefer please write to the practice manager. We will confirm receipt of your written complaint and contact you timeously to discuss further. If you would like to offer any suggestions about improving our service to you please speak to the practice manager or put it in writing if you prefer.

We welcome your comments and suggestions which should be conveyed to any doctor or the practice manager.

How you can help us

Try to lead a healthy lifestyle. Remember if you.....

• keep active
• watch your weight and diet
• don’t smoke
• drink in moderation
• don’t worry too much

.....you might not need us at all!

Make sure you understand your treatment - ask questions if you are uncertain.

Patients are responsible for their own health and the health of their children, and should co-operate with the practice in endeavouring to keep themselves healthy. We give you professional help and advice - please act on it!

Do not waste time.....

• if you cannot keep an appointment let us know promptly. We can then see another patient in your place.


• we expect that patients will understand that appointments are for one person only. Additional appointments should be made for more than one person.


• be considerate and honest when asking for an urgent surgery appointment, home visit or out-of-hours care.


• ask yourself if the problem can wait a little longer.


• don't ask for a house-call unless the patient is truly confined to bed and would be at risk if moved by car or taxi.

Remember that house-calls are at the doctor's discretion. They are very time-consuming and we can see three or four patients at the surgery in the time it takes to do one house-call. Ask us for guidelines if you are unsure when it is appropriate to call us out during the day or night.

• it is important to bear in mind most medical problems are dealt with more effectively in the clinical setting of a well equipped surgery.


• out-of-hours care (ie after 6.00pm or at the weekend) is for problems of an emergency nature that have suddenly and unexpectedly arisen. Other problems should be saved for surgery hours. Remember that the doctor who is on call at night has already worked a full day and may also work a full day after their night on call. Please bear this in mind.


• many problems can be solved with advice alone, therefore patients should not always expect a prescription.


• we ask that patients treat the staff and doctors with courtesy and respect. Bear in mind that reception staff have a very difficult job to do, juggling with limited resources and without detailed medical knowledge. They are trying to do their best for you.

ZERO TOLERANCE

At Viewpoint we always try to treat patients with consideration and respect and we hope that our patients will treat us in the same way. We will not accept threatening, abusive or aggressive behaviour in the surgery as it is distressing to staff and other patients alike. We will ask patients who show such behaviour to leave our list and seek treatment elsewhere.

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION – PUBLICATION SCHEME

The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 which came into force on 1st January 2005, enables any person requesting information from a public body to receive that information, subject to certain exemptions.The Practice Publication Scheme Document is available to view. Please contact the practice manager for more information.

YOUR PERSONAL HEALTH INFORMATION

To provide you with the care you need, we hold the details of your consultations, illnesses, tests, prescriptions and other treatments that have been recorded by everyone involved in your care and treatment eg GP, health visitor, practice nurse. This information may be stored on paper or electronically on computer files by practice staff.

We sometimes disclose some of your personal health information to other organisations involved in your care. For example, when your GP refers you to a specialist at the hospital we will send relevant details about you in the referral letter and receive information about you from them. Our practice also participates in regional and national programmes such as the cervical cytology screening service and your name and address, date of birth and health number will be given to them in order to send an invitation to you.

We need to use some of your personal information for administrative purposes. In order to ensure that the practice receives the correct level of financial support we have to disclose basic details about you to the NHS Board responsible for this area and to the Practitioner Services Division for the Scottish Health Service. These organisations have a role in protecting public funds, and are authorised to check that payments are being properly made. We are required to co-operate with these checks and the disclosure of your data is a necessary part of our provision of healthcare services.

Sometimes, we may participate in studies that are designed to improve the way services are provided to you or to check that our performance meets required standards and benchmarks. Whenever we take part in activities such as these we will ensure that as far as possible any details that may identify you are not disclosed.

We are sometimes involved in health research and the teaching of student nurses, doctors and other health professionals. We will not use or disclose your personal health information for these purposes unless you have been informed beforehand and given your consent for us to do so.

Where you need a service jointly provided with a local authority we will seek your permission before giving them your details.

Sometimes we are required by law to pass on information eg the notification of births and deaths and certain diseases or crimes to the government as a legal requirement.

Our use of your personal health information is covered by a duty of confidentiality, and is regulated by the Data Protection Act. This gives you a number of rights in relation to how your personal information is used, including a right to access the information we hold about you.

Everyone working for the NHS has a legal duty to keep information about you confidential and adheres to a Code of Practice on protecting patient confidentiality. Further information on this can be found at: www.nhsforthvalley.com/home/pubs/Healthrights/confidentiality.html

Anyone who receives information from us is also under a legal duty to keep it confidential.