Freedom of Information Policy

  Taiglum Medical Practice Publication Scheme

Produced as required by the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002

Index

Section 1        Introduction to the publication scheme

Section 2        About Taiglum Medical Practice

Section 3        Preparing the publication scheme

Section 4        Accessing information under the scheme

Section 5        Information that we may withhold

Section 6        Our charging policy

Section 7        Our copyright policy

Section 8        Our records management and disposal policy

Section 9        Feedback

Section 10      Complaints

Section 11      How to access information which is not available under this scheme

Section 12      Classes of information

Section 1: Introduction to the publication scheme

The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA) provides individuals with a right of access to recorded information held by Scotland’s public authorities. Anyone can use this right, and information can only be withheld where FOISA expressly permits it. FOISA provides that GPs are public authorities, to a certain extent, and you will have a right to access certain information held by GPs. A large proportion of the recorded information held by GPs is personal information contained in medical records. Personal information can be withheld under FOISA, but you have rights to access your own medical records under other legislation and this is explained in this scheme.

Section 23 of FOISA also requires that all Scottish public authorities maintain a publication scheme.  A publication scheme sets out the types of information that a public authority routinely makes available.   This scheme has been approved by the Scottish Information Commissioner, who is responsible for enforcing FOISA.  We are also obliged to review this scheme from time to time.

The purpose of the scheme is to provide you with details of the range of information that we routinely publish.  The scheme also provides details of how you can access this information, and tells you whether it is available free, or if there is a charge for the information.  With this scheme we aim to improve public access to the information we hold and to encourage public awareness, and participation in, the decisions we make.

Alongside FOISA, the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (the EIRs) provide a separate right of access to the environmental information that we hold.  This publication scheme also contains details of the environmental information that we routinely make available.

Where information is not published under this scheme, you can request it from us under FOISA or, in the case of environmental information, the EIRs.  For further information on accessing information not covered by this scheme, refer to Section 11 – How to access information not available under the scheme.

Section 2: About Taiglum Medical Practice

The National Health Service Scotland is the publically funded healthcare service for Scotland.  The provision of healthcare is the responsibility of 14 geographically based NHS boards and a number of Special Health Boards.  Details of NHS Scotland’s organisation can be found at http://www.show.scot.nhs.uk/organisations/index.aspx. 

NHS Boards contract with GP practices to provide primary care services to patients.  Taiglum Medical Practice holds a Section 17C contract with NHS Ayrshire and Arran.  Under this contract we provide primary medical services to patients on our practice list.

Who we are

Taiglum Medical Practice:

Drongan Resource Centre                                         Mossblown Health Centre

Mill of Shield Road                                                      4 Annbank Road

Drongan                                                                      Mossblown

KA6 7AY                                                                      KA6 5BH

The Health Centre

11 Hole Road

Coylton           

KA6 6JL

Drongan opening hours: Mon, Tues, Wed, Fri – 8.30am to 5.30pm, Thurs – 8.30am to 1.00pm

Mossblown opening hours: Mon, Tues, Wed, Thurs – 8.30am to 5.30pm, Fri – 8.30am to 1.00pm

Tarbolton opening hours: Mon, Tues, Thurs, Fri – 8.30am to 5.30pm, Wed – 8.30am to 1.00pm

Coylton opening hours: Mon, Tues, Thurs, Fri – 8.30am to 2.30pm, Wed – 12.00pm to 6.00pm

Staff: 7 GP Partners, 2 Practice Nurses, Treatment Room Nurse, 2 Phlebotomists, Business Manager, Practice Manager, 11 Admin staff.

Out of Hours cover is provided by NHS 24 and Ayrshire Doctors on Call (ADOC), Telephone number: 08454242424

Our practice area includes: Drongan, Rankinston, Sinclairston, Trabboch, Tarbolton, Stair, Mossblown, Annbank, St Quivox, Coylton and all surrounding farms and houses.

One of our GPs speaks French.  If you require an interpreter, British Sign Language Interpreter, lip speaker or electronic note taker please contact NHS Ayrshire & Arran interpreter services on 01292 269542.

Our practice leaflet is available from all surgeries and the same information is also available on our website www.taiglummedical.co.uk

The practice sometimes has medical students attached to it but is not a formal training practice.

Our services

General practitioners are registered with the General Medical Council and follow the standards and good medical practice guidelines laid down by the GMC, including the requirements set out in the GMC guidance Duties of a Doctor (http://www.gmc-uk.org/guidance/good_medical_practice/duties_of_a_doctor.asp).  This practice is required to provide primary medical services to the standard laid down in our contract with the NHS board.  This practice participates in the Quality and Outcomes Framework established under current General Medical Services contract (from 1 April 2004) which applies equally to practices operating under a section 17C contract.  Funding under the QOF is dependent on achievement against a variety of clinical and non-clinical indicators.  This practice aims to take account of NHS Quality and Improvement Scotland standards and guidance, Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) guidelines relevant to general practice, and Scottish Government Health Directorates service strategies and frameworks.

All practices are subject to a contract review conducted by their NHS board to ensure the practice is meeting the requirements of its contract. 

Under our contract with NHS Ayrshire and Arran we provide a range of services to our patients, including:

General primary medical services, chronic disease management, child health surveillance, contraceptive services, cervical cytology services, maternity medical services, minor surgery services, obstetric services, influenza and pneumococcal immunisation service, diabetes enhanced service, palliative care enhanced service, cancer enhanced service, osteoporosis enhanced service, ethnicity monitoring & interpreter needs enhanced service, learning disabilities enhanced service, carers enhanced service, extended hours service, ring pessaries enhanced service, helicobacter pylori enhanced service, anti-coagulation monitoring service and ‘Keep Well’ health promotion checks.

Our decision making process

Practice meetings are held every Tuesday at 1.00pm where clinical, managerial and business decisions are made.  On every 1^st Tuesday of the month the practice has a multi-disciplinary team meeting where Community Staff as well as GPs, Practice Nurses and Management attend.  This is also when the palliative care register is discussed with the Palliative Care Specialist Nurses.  All decisions affecting the partnership are made on a majority vote basis.  There are two managers: Business Manager and Practice Manager.  They are on an equal basis.

Financial and funding information

Taiglum Medical Practice receives funding from NHS sources to provide NHS services to patients.  We do not charge patients for NHS services.  You can request details of our practice funding as outlined in Section 12 – Classes of Information.

Section 3: Preparing the publication scheme

This publication scheme is adapted from a model publication scheme produced by BMA Scotland and the Scottish General Practitioners Committee.  Ultimate responsibility for the model publication scheme rests with the British Medical Association.  BMA Scotland welcomes comments on the model publication scheme and is committed to revaluating the appropriateness of the model publication scheme on an ongoing basis.

The BMA model publication scheme was used as the basis for our practice publication scheme.  Both the model publication scheme and this publication scheme were produced with due regard to public interest in providing access to the information that we hold which relates to:

• The services we provide
• The costs of those services
• The standard of those services

·          The facts that inform the important decision we take

·          The reasoning that informs our decisions

Section 4: Accessing Information under the scheme

Information available under our publication scheme will normally be available through the routes described below.  Section 12 – Classes of Information provides more details on the information available under the scheme, along with additional guidance on how the information falling with each “class” may be accessed.

Online

Most information listed in our publication scheme is available to download from our practice website www.taiglummedical.co.uk .  If you have any difficulty accessing information online please contact us by an alternative route.

By email

You can request the information you seek by email at clinical_practice_taiglumpractice_80720@aapct.scot.nhs.uk wherever possible.  When requesting information from us, please provide a telephone number so we can telephone you to clarify details, if necessary.

By phone

Information can also be requested from us over the telephone.  Please call 01292 591345 to request information available under this scheme.

By post

All information under the scheme will normally be available in paper copy form, but please consider the impact on the environment.  Please address your request to:

Practice Manager

Taiglum Medical Practice

Mill of Shield Road

Drongan

KA6 7AY

When writing to us to request information, please include your name and address, full details of the information or documents you would like to receive, and any fee payable (see Section 6: Our charging policy for further information on fees).  Please also include a telephone number so we can telephone you to clarify any details, if necessary.

Advice and assistance

If you have any difficulty identifying the information you want to access, then please contact the practice by one of the methods listed above.

Section 5:  Information that we may withhold

All information covered by our publication scheme can either be accessed through our website, or by requesting a copy of our policy at reception and will be provided promptly following our receipt of your request.

Our aim in maintaining this publication scheme is to be as open as possible.  You should note, however, that there may be circumstances where information will be withheld from one of the classes of information listed in Section 12 – Classes of Information.  Information will only be withheld where permitted by FOISA.

Information may be withheld, for example, where its disclosure would breach the law of confidentiality or harm an organisation’s commercial interests.  Information may also be withheld if it is another person’s personal information, and its release would breach data protection legislation.

Information would not be disclosed in the following examples:

• Requests for information that is contained in patient medical records.  However, you do have the right to request your own medical records, see Section 11 - How to access information which is not available under this scheme.
• Requests for information relating to private income of practice partners or practice staff
• Requests for financial information that would likely prejudice substantially the commercial interests of any person

Additionally, section 25 of FOISA provides an absolute exemption which allows our practice to refuse to deal with a request where the requested information is already reasonably obtainable elsewhere, even where a fee may be charged.  Information provided in the publication scheme is considered reasonably obtainable.

Whenever information is withheld we will inform you of this, and will set out why it was not appropriate for that information to be disclosed.  Even where information is withheld it may, in many cases, be possible to provide copies with the withheld information edited out.

If you wish to complain about any information which has been withheld from you, please refer to Section 10 – Complaints.

Section 6: Our charging policy

Unless otherwise stated in Section 12 – Classes of Information, all information contained within our scheme is available from us free of charge where it can be downloaded from our website or where it can be sent to you electronically by email.

We reserve the right to impose charges for providing information in paper copy or on computer disc.  Charges will reflect the actual costs of reproduction and postage to the practice, as set out below.

In the event that a charge is to be levied, you will be advised of the charge and how it has been calculated.  Information will not be provided to you until payment has been received.

Reproduction costs:

Where charges are applied, photocopied information will be charged at a standard rate of 10p per A4 paper (black and white copy) and 30p per A4 paper (colour copy).

Postage cost:

We will pass on postage charges to the requester at the cost to the practice of sending the information by first class post.

Section 7: Our copyright policy

Taiglum Medical Practice holds the copyright for the vast majority of information in this publication scheme.  All of this information can be copied or reproduced without our formal permission, provided it is copied or reproduced accurately, is not used in a misleading context, and provided that the source of the material is identified.

The publication scheme may, however, contain information where the copyright holder is not Taiglum Medical Practice.  In most cases the copyright holder will be obvious from the documents.  In cases where the copyright is unclear, however, it is the responsibility of the person accessing the information to locate and seek the permission of the copyright holder before reproducing the material or in any other way breaching the rights of the copyright holder.  Wherever possible, this scheme will indicate where we do not own the copyright on documents within Section 12 – Classes of Information.

Information about Crown copyright material is available on the website of the Queens Printer for Scotland at www.oqps.gov.uk.  We can provide you with a copy of this information if you do not have internet access.

Section 8: Our records management and disposal policy

All information at the Taiglum Medical Practice is held, retained and destroyed in accordance with Scottish Government – Records Management: NHS Code of Practice (Scotland).  Confidentiality of patient information is maintained in accordance with the NHS (Scotland) Act 1978 Directions on the Confidentiality and Disclosure of Information: General Medical Services, Primary Medical Services Section 17C Agreements and Health Boards Primary Medical Services Contracts.  These documents are available on the NHS Scotland website (http://www.show.scot.nhs.uk).

Section 9: Feedback

FOISA requires that we review our publication scheme from time to time.  As a result, we welcome feedback on how we can develop our scheme further.  If you would to comment on any aspect of this publication scheme, then please contact us.  You may, for example wish to tell us about:

• other information that you would like to see included in the scheme
• whether you found the scheme easy to use
• whether you found the publication scheme useful
• whether our staff were helpful

• other ways in which our publication scheme can be improved

Please send any comments or suggestions to:

Taiglum Medical Practice

Mill of Shield Road

Drongan

KA6 7AY

or

email: clinical_practice_taiglumpractice_80720@aapct.scot.nhs.uk

Section 10: Complaints

Our aim is to make our publication scheme as user-friendly as possible, and we hope that you can access all the information we publish with ease.   If you do wish to complain about any aspect of the publication scheme, however, then please contact us, and we will try and resolve your complaint as quickly as possible.  You can contact:

Practice Manager

Taiglum Medical Practice

Mill of Shield Road

Drongan

KA6 7AY

Tel No: 01292 591345

Any complaint will be acknowledged within two working days of receipt and we will respond in full within twenty working days. 

You have legal rights to access information under this scheme and a right of appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner if you are dissatisfied with our response.  These rights apply only to information requests made in writing* or another recordable format.  If you are unhappy with our responses to your request you can ask us to review it and if you are still unhappy, you can make an appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner.

The Commissioner’s website has a guide to this three step process, and he operates an enquiry service on Monday to Friday from 9:00am to 5:00pm.  His office can be contacted as follows:

Scottish Information Commissioner

Kinburn Castle

Doubledykes Road

St Andrews

Fife

KY16 9DS

Telephone      01334 464610

Email                enquiries@itspublicknowledge.info

Website           www.itspublicknowledge.info

*verbal requests for environmental information carry similar rights.

Section 11: How to access information which is not available under this scheme

If the information you are seeking is not available under this publication scheme, then you may wish to request it from us.  The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA) provides you with a right of access to the information we hold, subject to certain exemptions.  The Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs) separately provide a right of access to the environmental information we hold, while the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA) provides a right of access to any personal information about you that we hold. Again, these rights are subject to certain exceptions or exemptions.

Should you wish to request a copy of any information that we hold that is not available under this scheme, please write to:

Practice Manager

Taiglum Medical Practice

Mill of Shield Road

Drongan

KA6 7AY 

Charges for information which is not available under the scheme

The charges for information which is available under this scheme are set out under section 6 – Our Charging Policy.  Fees for information that is not available under this scheme are outlined in The Freedom of Information (Fees for Required Disclosure) (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (http://www.opsi.gov.uk/legislation/scotland/ssi2004/20040467.htm).  If you submit a request to us for information which is not available under the scheme the charges will be based on the following calculations:

General information requests

• There will be no charge for information requests which cost us £100 or less to process.
• Where information costs between £100 and £600 to provide you may be asked to pay 10% of the cost. That is, if you were to ask for information that cost us £600 to provide, you would be asked to pay £50, calculated on the basis of a waiver for the first £100 and 10% of the remaining £500.
• We are not obliged to respond to requests which will cost us over £600 to process.
• In calculating any fee, staff time will be calculated at actual cost per staff member hourly salary rate to a maximum of £15 per person per hour.
• We do not charge for the time to determine whether we hold the information requested, nor for the time it takes to decide whether the information can be released. Charges may be made for locating, retrieving and providing information to you.
• In the event that we decide to impose a charge we will issue you with notification of the charge (a fees notice) and how it has been calculated. You will have three months from the date of issue of the fees notice in which to decide whether to pay the charge. The information will be provided to you on payment of the charge. If you decide not to proceed with the request there will be no charge to you.

Charges for environmental information

We do not charge for the time to determine whether we hold the information requested, nor for the time it takes to decide whether the information can be released.

In the event that we decide to impose a charge we will issue you with notification of the charge and how it has been calculated. The information will be provided to you on payment of the charge. If you decide not to proceed with the request there will be no charge to you.

Charges are calculated on the basis of the actual cost to the authority of providing the information.

• Photocopying is charged at 10p per A4 sheet for black and white copying, 30p per A4 sheet for colour copying.
• Postage is charged at actual rate for first class mail.
• Staff time is calculated at actual cost per staff member hourly salary rate to a maximum of £15 per person per hour.

The first £100worth of information will be provided to you without charge.

Where information costs between £100and £600 to provide you will be asked to pay 10% of the cost. That is, if you were to ask for information that cost us £600 to provide, you would be asked to pay £50 calculated on the basis of a waiver for the first £100 and 10% of the remaining £500.

Where it would cost more than £600to provide the information to you, however, we will ask you to pay the full cost of providing the information, with no waiver for any portion of the cost.

Requests for your own personal data:

While you cannot request personal data under the FOISA you are entitled to request your own personal data under the DPA.  Under the DPA you can request your personal information from [insert practice name].  We reserve the right to charge a maximum of £50 for requests for an individual’s own personal information.

Section 12: Classes of information

The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act, 2002 requires a publication scheme to specify the classes of information the Public Authority already publishes or intends to publish.  Our intention is to publish as much information as possible where there is known to be public interest.  However, exemptions under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act, 2002 may allow us to withhold some information, as indicated in Section 5: Information that we may withhold.

Our practice publishes, or intends to publish, information under the Classes listed below:

1. Who we are
2. Our services
3. Financial and funding information
4. Regular publications, promotional and advisory leaflets
5. Our policies and procedures
6. Complaints procedures