(Why we collect your personal data and what we do with it)

When you supply your personal details to this clinic they are stored and processed for four reasons (the bits in bold are the relevant terms used in the General Data Protection Regulation – the law):

1. We need to collect personal information about your health in order to provide you with the best possible treatment. Your requesting treatment and our agreement to provide that care constitutes a contract. You can, of course, refuse to provide that information, but if you were to do that we would be unable to provide treatment.
2. We have a “legitimate interest” in collecting that information, because without it we could not do our job effectively and safely.
3. We also think that it is important that we can contact you in order to confirm your appointments with us or to update you on matters related to your medical care. This again constitutes “legitimate interest”, but this time it is your legitimate interest.
4. Provided we have your consent we may occasionally send you general health information in the form of articles, advice or newsletters. You may withdraw your consent at any time – just let us know by any convenient method.

We have a legal obligation to retain you records for eight years after your most recent appointment (or age 25 if this is longer). After this period you can ask us to keep them if you wish however we will destroy paper documents by shredding and incineration after this period.

Your records are stored; on paper in filing cabinets within a locked room, online on a secure, password protected, 2FA computer.

We will never share your records with anyone who does not need access without your written consent. The only people who have access to your records are practitioners. We currently do not have reception staff but if we did they would have limited access – names, addresses and telephone numbers to be able to do their job.

From time to time we may need to employ consultants to perform tasks which might give them access to your personal data (but not your medical notes). We will ensure they are fully aware that they must treat the information as confidential, and we will ensure they sign a non-disclosure agreement.

You have the right to see what personal data of yours we hold and you can also ask us to correct any factual errors. Provided the minimum legal period has passed you can also ask us to erase your records.

We want you to be absolutely confident that we are treating your personal data responsibly and that we are doing everything we can to make sure only people who can access that data have a genuine and valid reason to do so.

If you feel we are mis-handling your personal data in some way you have the right to complain. Complaints need to be sent to what is known in the jargon as the “Data Controller”. Here are the details you need for that: Kendall Chew, Osteopathy Works, Betley Court Farm, Main Road, Betley, Crewe, CW3 9BH. Tel: 01270886288 Email: Helppain1@gmail.com

If you are not happy with our response then you have the right to raise the matter with the Information Commissioner’s Office: https://ico.org.uk/global/contact-us/.

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