Doctors, do they open their own mail at surgery?
Discussion
I’m trying to Google but not finding anything, pretty angry just now at discovering a paper letter was sent to my GP.
It relates to something highly confidential to me & whilst I know in theory staff are supposed to keep things confidential I know they also like to gossip - I live in a small town
(Sure some smart fella on here will speculate it’s the results from my STD test, but I know that clinic even asks if you want results shared with your local GP.)
I’d be really happy to find out of Dr’s open their own mail?
It relates to something highly confidential to me & whilst I know in theory staff are supposed to keep things confidential I know they also like to gossip - I live in a small town
(Sure some smart fella on here will speculate it’s the results from my STD test, but I know that clinic even asks if you want results shared with your local GP.)
I’d be really happy to find out of Dr’s open their own mail?
Edited by AndyAudi on Wednesday 26th May 00:50
I can't imagine for a moment that GPs open their own mail, even if it is marked personal/private/confidential. Imagine the amount of test results, consultations, referrals etc etc to'ing and fro'ing, the scanning onto patient files, notes for action etc. Surely that's what the admin staff are there for. It would be massively time consuming and inefficient for the GPs to be doing all that themselves.
hyphen said:
AndyAudi said:
I’m trying to Google but not finding anything, pretty angry just now at discovering a paper letter was sent to my GP.
....
I don't get it.....
Do you mean the hospital or some other body wrote a letter to the GP instead of sending electronically? And who told you?
Admin staff will open the envelope and file for reading in the addressees in tray (old days) or scan for reading later in your records. They are aunlikely to read past the addressees name to your details let alone the contents.
I know GP receptionists have a difficult reputation but they are too busy to read the hundred of letters received every week.
If the partners or managers had grounds to believe a staff member was breaching confidentiality then it would be disciplinary -> dismissal.
On balance it is highly unlikely anyone unauthorised will have read the communication. I'd advise against taking this up with the practice as then you can guarantee that a number of partners and the management will have to access the record to address the complaint
I know GP receptionists have a difficult reputation but they are too busy to read the hundred of letters received every week.
If the partners or managers had grounds to believe a staff member was breaching confidentiality then it would be disciplinary -> dismissal.
On balance it is highly unlikely anyone unauthorised will have read the communication. I'd advise against taking this up with the practice as then you can guarantee that a number of partners and the management will have to access the record to address the complaint
I believe the general process is that the letters are opened by admin staff and then scanned into their systems before being workflowed electronically to the relevant department for notation/readcoding.
It's a few years since I worked in the primary care field but I did used to work for a company that supplied the document management software and this is how it worked in all the practices that we supplied as far as I am aware
It's a few years since I worked in the primary care field but I did used to work for a company that supplied the document management software and this is how it worked in all the practices that we supplied as far as I am aware
F, thanks for the responses,
This morning the offending party confirmed there was nothing on my file to say this shouldn’t have happened (think they changed systems to electronic due to Covid) fresh forms sent out electronically & sharing info has now been set as “not to anyone (other than in an emergency” instead of “Ok for GP”. (The letter was written as if it was an update to my GP who quite rightly new f all about it!!)
My GP has emailed back now too that as it’s “medical correspondence” it needed to be filed but that he can get it redacted.should anyone need a copy of my file in future. Horse has probably bolted now though & it’s nothing bad or embarrassing so guessing I won’t press further. At times I like living in a small community where everyone knows your name, but not this time!
This morning the offending party confirmed there was nothing on my file to say this shouldn’t have happened (think they changed systems to electronic due to Covid) fresh forms sent out electronically & sharing info has now been set as “not to anyone (other than in an emergency” instead of “Ok for GP”. (The letter was written as if it was an update to my GP who quite rightly new f all about it!!)
My GP has emailed back now too that as it’s “medical correspondence” it needed to be filed but that he can get it redacted.should anyone need a copy of my file in future. Horse has probably bolted now though & it’s nothing bad or embarrassing so guessing I won’t press further. At times I like living in a small community where everyone knows your name, but not this time!
Are you complaining that you got a copy of the same letter that was sent to your doctor which was just to be put into your records and there was no follow up needed from the doctor to you?
Its not worth anyones time to reveal what is in a patients records. Its pretty well regulated.
Im waiting on the DVLA having a good old root through my records to give me my driving licence back after being fit free for a year from epilepsy.
Its not worth anyones time to reveal what is in a patients records. Its pretty well regulated.
Im waiting on the DVLA having a good old root through my records to give me my driving licence back after being fit free for a year from epilepsy.
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