Why GPs must meet NHS digital healthcare safety standards

Digital transformation in primary care has brought major advancements in patient care and medical record management in recent years but not without risk to patient privacy.

Healthcare providers are improving healthcare accessibility and efficiency with the widespread adoption of electronic health records (EHRs) and telemedicine.

However, this digital revolution also raises concerns about the security and privacy of patient data.

In this blog we’ll delve into how seriously General Practitioners need to take meeting NHS data regulations aimed at protecting patient privacy.

NHS red tape or vital safeguarding?

The NHS is required to maintain high standards of data protection, information governance and transparency to meet patient privacy standards by the Government.

And GPs find themselves at the sharp end – having to meet a legal obligation which forms a cornerstone of trust with the patients they serve.  Essentially, building trust with patients will increasingly depend on data security.

Legal frameworks covering how patient data must be stored and handled are the Data Protection Act (DP) 2018, which brought the UK General Data Protection Regulations into law, and the Common Law Duty of Confidentiality (CLDC).

This means that when a patient/service user shares information in confidence it must not be disclosed without some form of legal authority or justification.

In practice, personal information cannot be legally disclosed without their consent unless there are exceptional reasons; a key part of maintaining patient privacy. 

Day to day handling of NHS data

All organisations with access to NHS patient data and systems must use the Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPT) to assess their performance and ensure they achieve at least ‘Standards Met’ from the assessment.

Each organisation is asssessed against the National Data Guardian’s 10 data security standards. The NDG is an independent champion for patients and the public, overseeing matters of their confidential health and care information.

GPs must be diligent in completing this toolkit, as it serves as a comprehensive measure of their commitment to maintaining the highest standards of data security.

Teamwork maintains patient privacy standards

As DSPT requirements applies to suppliers to the NHS, as well as GP surgeries, providers such as Silicon Practice are also required to assess themselves.

Of course, it doesn’t stop there. NHS data handlers and service providers must meet various requirements to be included on the latest NHS procurement framework, including being Cyber Essentials and ISO 27001 certified.

More about how Silicon Practice meets standards can be found on our security page.

Carrot and stick approach to building trust over patient privacy

Always fragile, trust between patients and the NHS can be easily damaged; any security breaches would be headline news in a world where pressure is building to increase use of digital resources.

Certainly this is taken seriously by the Government as punishments for failing to comply with data protection legislation can be severe.

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) can impose fines of up to £17m, or 4% of global turnover, for the most serious breaches.

Need for streamlining will only increase

There’s no doubt that push towards going digital is not going to go away.

Between mid-2021 and mid-2036, the UK population is projected to grow by 6.6 million people (9.9%). 

At the same time the population is continuing to age. During the next 15 years the size of the UK population aged 85 years and over is projected to increase from 1.6 million (2.5% of the total population) to 2.6 million (3.5%).

To cope with these demands any streamlining of secure communication between practice and patient is going to be essential, as the NHS seeks to maximise value for money.

With this in mind GP surgeries will be looking to find digital solutions, such as FootFall, which enable patients to contact their practice without the need to phone for every enquiry, with the frustration of sitting in a queue and, potentially, delaying someone whose need to speak to a member of staff may be essential.

The FootFall dashboard is becoming ever-more user-friendly to practice admin staff and clinicians as well.

Clinicians can respond to patients directly, using pre-set practice responses or free text replies, with the ability to attach documents or leaflets to enrich communication.

With EHR Integration enabled the practice can:

• • Send an episode directly to the patient record

• • Send SNOMED-CT coded data into the clinical system

• • Send attachments such as images into the clinical system

• • Look up previous requests for a patient has sent in other requests through FootFall

• • Use EMIS to open the current patient open in the FootFall Dashboard and look at their EHR

Conclusion

Transparent communication builds trust and fosters a cooperative relationship between healthcare providers and patients.

Protecting sensitive health information is paramount if patients are to continue to adopt and adapt to the growing digital nature of healthcare, which depends on increasing efficiency as the UK experiences an ageing population with growing demands.

Get in touch to see how Silicon Practice can help your practice or ICB.