Transparency notices

Transparency notices

Secure Data Environment

Our GP practice is taking part in a project to improve access to patient records for healthcare researchers and planners.

Giving researchers and planners access to patient information can help find new treatments and improve care for everyone.

They will only see coded information like your medicines, or what illnesses you have. Your name and any personal details are removed or replaced with a code before anything is accessed. They are only allowed access if they meet strict security and ethical standards. Their research must also be in the public interest. Your health records will stay within the NHS, and researchers will only be allowed to view the parts of your record that they have permission to access.

Find out more about the North East and North Cumbria Secure Data Environment.

"NHS England has been directed by the government to establish and operate the OpenSAFELY COVID-19 Service and the OpenSAFELY Data Analytics Service. These services provide a secure environment that supports research, clinical audit, service evaluation and health surveillance for COVID-19 and other purposes.

Each GP practice remains the controller of its own GP patient data but is required to let approved users run queries on pseudonymised patient data. This means identifiers are removed and replaced with a pseudonym.

Only approved users are allowed to run these queries, and they will not be able to access information that directly or indirectly identifies individuals.

Patients who do not wish for their data to be used as part of this process can register a type 1 opt out with their GP.

Here you can find additional information about OpenSAFELY."

Read the coronavirus (COVID-19) response transparency notice.

National Obesity Audit Transparency Notice

NHS England has established the National Obesity Audit (NOA) data collection as part of the National Clinical Audit and Patient Outcomes Programme (NCAPOP) to measure service provision and outcomes to support current and future services with the information they need to deliver efficient, effective and equitable prevention and care programmes.

It is a legal requirement for general practices to provide data under section 259 in relation to this programme.

Read the  National Obesity Audit: NHS England Transparency Notice - NHS Digital