Privacy Policy

Reviewed on the 21st of February 2023

THE DENTAL CENTRE DATA PROTECTION PRIVACY NOTICE FOR PATIENTS

In providing your dental care and treatment, we will ask for information about you and your health. Occasionally, we may receive information from other providers who have been involved in providing your care. This privacy notice describes the type of personal information we hold, why we hold it and what we do with it.

We may collect the following information about you:

. Personal details such as your name, date of birth, NHS number, national insurance number, address, telephone numbers including home and mobile.
. Information about your dental and general health, including;- Clinical records made by dentists and other dental professionals involved with your care and treatment, X-rays, clinical photographs, digital scans of your mouth and teeth, study models, medical and dental histories, treatment plans and consent.
. Notes of conversations with you about your care.
. Dates of your appointments.
. Details of any complaints you have made and how these were dealt with.
. Correspondence with other health professionals or institutions.
. Details of the fees we have charged. The amounts you have paid and how payment was obtained.

Dr Kevan Baker is responsible for keeping secure the information about you that we hold.

Those at the practice who have access to your information include dentists and other dental professionals involved with your care and treatment, and the reception staff responsible for the management and administration of the practice.

How we use your information:

To provide you with the dental care and treatment that you need, we require up-to-date and accurate information about you.

If you are an NHS patient we will share your information in connection with your dental treatment only.

We will seek your preference for how we contact you about your dental care. Our methods are telephone, text or letter. We do not contact patients by e.mail unless we are responding to an e.mail via them.

We will never pass on your details for marketing purposes, we may in the future send text messages or telephone or letter if your regular examination is due. (recall).

Sharing Information

We may have to pass on details if we are referring to hospitals, orthodontics, endodontics or specialist dental treatment. We will never refer without prior consent from yourselves.
Your information is normally used only by those working at the practice but there may be instances where we need to share it – for example, with:-

. Your doctor
. The hospital or community dental services or other health professionals caring for you
. NHS payment authorities
. Private dental schemes of which you are a member

We will only disclose your information on a need-to-know basis and will limit any information that we share to the minimum necessary.

In certain circumstances or if required by law, we may need to disclose your information to a third party not connected with your health care, including HMRC or other law enforcement or government agencies.

Keeping your information safe:

We store your personal information securely on our practice computer system and manual filing system. Your information cannot be accessed by those who do not work at the practice; only those working at the practice have access to your information. They understand their legal responsibility to maintain confidentiality and follow practice procedures to ensure this.

We take responsibility to ensure security of the practice premises, the practice filing systems and computers.

We use cloud computing facilities for storing some of your information. The practice has a rigorous agreement with our provider to ensure that we meet the obligations described in this policy and that we keep your information securely.

We keep your records for 12 years after the date of your last visit to the practice.

Access to your information and other rights:

You have the right to access the information that we hold about you and to receive a copy. You should submit your request to the practice manager Sharon Theobald in writing. We do normally make a charge for copies of your information.

You can also request us to:-

. Correct any information that you believe is inaccurate or incomplete. If we have
disclosed that information to a third party, we will let them know about the change
. Erase information we hold although you should be aware that, for legal reasons, we
may be unable to erase certain information (for example, information about your
dental treatment)
. Stop using your information – for example, sending you reminders for appointments
. Supply your information electronically to another dentist

If you do not agree:

If you do not wish us to use your personal information as described, you should discuss the matter with your dentist. If you object to the way that we collect and use your information, we may not be able to continue to provide your dental care.

If you have any concerns about how we use your information and you do not feel able to discuss it with your dentist or anyone at the practice, you should contact The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), Wycliffe House, Water lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF
(03030123113 or 01625 545745)