PRIVACY NOTICE
(Why I collect your personal data and what I do with it)
When you supply your personal details to this clinic they are stored and processed for 4 reasons (the bits in bold are the relevant terms used in the Data protection Act 2018, which includes the General Data Protection Regulation – ie the law):
1. I need to collect personal information about your health in order to provide you with the best possible treatment. Your requesting treatment and my agreement to provide that care constitutes a contract. You can, of course, refuse to provide the information, but if you were to do that I would not be able to provide treatment.
2. I have a “Legitimate Interest” in collecting that information, because without it I couldn’t do my job effectively and safely.
3. I also think that it is important that I can contact you in order to confirm your appointments with me 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 I have your consent, I may occasionally send you general health information in the form of articles, advice or newsletters. You may withdraw this consent at any time – just let me know by any convenient method.
I have a legal obligation to retain your records for 8 years after your most recent appointment (or age 25, if this is longer), but after this period you can ask me to delete your records if you wish. Otherwise, I will retain your records indefinitely in order that I can provide you with the best possible care should you need to see me at some future date.
Your records are stored on paper, in locked filing cabinets, and on my office computers. These are password-protected, backed up regularly, and stored securely out of working hours. At some point in the future I may move to electronic storage (“in the cloud”), using a specialist medical records service.
I will never share your data with anyone who does not need access without your written consent. Only the following people/agencies will have routine access to your data:
- Reception staff, because they organise my diaries, and coordinate appointments and reminders (but they do not have access to your medical history or sensitive personal information)
- Other administrative staff, such as my bookkeeper. Again, administrative staff will not have access to your medical notes, just your essential contact details.
- I may also use Mailchimp to coordinate my messages, so your name and email address may be saved on their server.
From time to time, I may have to employ consultants to perform tasks which might give them access to your personal data (but not your medical notes). I will ensure that they are fully aware that they must treat that information as confidential, and I will ensure that they sign a non-disclosure agreement.
You have the right to see what personal data of yours I hold, and you can also ask me to correct any factual errors.
Provided the legal minimum period has elapsed, you can also ask me to erase your records.
I want you to be absolutely confident that I am treating your personal data responsibly, and that I am doing everything I can to make sure that the only people who can access that data have a genuine need to do so. Of course, if you feel that I am mishandling your personal data in some way, you have the right to complain. I am the “Data Controller” and you would send your complaint to:
Daniel Thomas, daniel@jerseyosteopath.com tel. 01534 520714 New Era Health Centre, Victoria Road, St Clement, Jersey JE2 6QG
If you are not satisfied with my response, then you have the right to raise the matter with the Information Commissioner’s Office.
Patient Information Sheet
Thank you for booking an appointment with Daniel Thomas.
When visiting an osteopath for the first time, it is natural to feel a little unsure of what to expect. The following fact sheet has been developed to explain what happens and answer any questions you may have. If you have any other concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact the practice by telephone, prior to attending your appointment.
Your Consultation
Osteopaths are healthcare professionals who are specifically trained in diagnosing health issues. At the start of your first appointment, your osteopath will ask you questions about your medical history and lifestyle, as well as any symptoms you may be experiencing. This is very important as it will help them to make an accurate diagnosis and suggest appropriate treatment.
They will write down what you tell them in your records. These will be treated as confidential in accordance with standards of practice set out by the General Osteopathic Council and the Data Protection Act 1998. If you wish, you may request a copy of your notes.
Your osteopath will need to examine the area(s) of your body causing discomfort. Sometimes the cause of the problem may be in a different area to the pain, (For example, pain in your lower arm may be linked to the nerves in your neck) so they may need to examine your whole body. They will need to feel for any tightness in the muscles and stiffness in the joints and may need to touch these areas to identify problems. They will explain what they are doing as they go along.
If you are uncomfortable with any part of this, you have the right to ask them to stop at any stage, without prejudicing
your future treatment.
What to Wear
As with any healthcare appointment, it may be necessary for your osteopath to ask you to remove some clothing. This is so they can see and touch the areas of the body causing you concern. Your osteopath will want you to feel at ease, therefore if you feel uncomfortable undressing to your underwear, your osteopath may be able to suggest wearing clothing, such as shorts and a t-shirt, or close-fitting garments, that will enable them to work effectively, so please do discuss this with them.
You are welcome to ask a friend or relative to accompany you and be present throughout your appointment.
Your Treatment
Your osteopath will make a diagnosis and discuss a course of treatment with you. This may involve further visits for manual therapy – a range of gentle hands on techniques that focus on releasing tension, stretching muscles and mobilising joints. Together with exercises that you can do at home and helpful advice designed to help you relieve or manage your pain, keep active and maintain the best of health. They will discuss the likely cost of this and ask for your consent to begin treatment.
Most osteopaths will begin your treatment at your first appointment, but sometimes they may require further tests first i.e. blood tests or scans. Occasionally they may diagnose an illness that they are unable to treat and may refer you to your GP or another appropriate health professional.
Is Treatment Painful?
Osteopathic treatment is usually a very gentle process and osteopaths work very hard to make treatment as painless as possible, but you may experience some discomfort during and after treatment. Your osteopath will warn you if they think that the technique that they are about to use is likely to be uncomfortable and will stop if you tell them that you are feeling too much pain.
Following treatment, you may experience some mild soreness in the area of the body that was treated, this will normally resolve within 48 hours. If you experience serious or unusual symptoms after treatment, you should contact your osteopath straight away for advice.
Training and Regulation
You can be confident that your osteopath has the highest level of training and expertise, and will provide a safe and effective diagnosis and treatment for you. In the UK, the osteopathic profession is regulated by the General Osteopathic Council and osteopaths are trained to degree level, taking a minimum of four years, including over 1000 hours of contact time with patients at undergraduate level.
Osteopaths are also recognised by the NHS as Allied Health Professionals and play a critical role in the diagnosis, treatment and care of people of all ages.
Patient information sheet
Please read after your first appointment.
As an osteopath I wish to make decisions about your care and treatment with you. This means that I will continually keep you informed of the care/treatment I propose, the benefits of that care/treatment, any risks that may be associated with it and any alternatives to you having osteopathic treatment. This will help you make informed decisions about your care/treatment. The information I give will be specific to you, your age, current health and presenting symptoms. Please tell me if the information I give is unclear or you do not understand what I have explained.
It is also important that you keep me informed of any changes to your state of health or changes to any medications you are taking.
• You have been seen by Daniel Thomas, a registered osteopath, and I have explained my proposed plan of treatment for you at your first appointment. If you have been asked to return for a follow up appointment I will have explained why.
• Patients are allotted approximately 60 minutes for their first appointment and approximately 30 minutes for any follow up appointments. Allotted times are not fixed and your osteopath may spend more or less time during your appointment. Time spent on treatment is dependent on the complexity of the problem or how much can be realistically achieved on each visit. Time is also required for patient clinical notes, providing exercises if appropriate and advice.
• If you have been asked to go through some exercises please try to do these regularly and follow the plan set by your osteopath. If your osteopath suggested withholding from exercise, there will be a reason for this and you should wait until advised otherwise. In general, keeping active is better than resting.
• If you have been referred for a scan or further investigation please keep in touch so we know what is happening.
Having any physical therapy treatment whether for preventative care, rehabilitation, or managing a recent acute condition, usually involves some hands on treatment; this often leads to temporary side effects. It’s common to feel a little stiff or sore the next day following the initial treatment; this usually, lasts around 24-48 hours. Most people describe this as similar to ‘post exercise soreness’. It’s also common to feel tired or have a temporary headache after treatment.
Very rarely, there are more serious reactions: examples would include: stroke, prolapsed disc, severe pains radiating to a limb requiring emergency medical intervention, ‘cauda equina’ syndrome (a condition which can cause bladder and bowel impairment or, nerve damage and muscle weakness).
Make sure you contact Daniel Thomas if you are concerned about any problems you are having.
Contact details: Tel: 07829 799996 E: daniel@jerseyosteopath.com
Complaints Procedure
If you have a complaint or concern about any aspect of your treatment, please let me know as soon as possible.
Please give me full details of your complaint and I will undertake to treat it seriously, deal with it promptly and learn from it by reviewing or, if appropriate, improving my standards.
Step 1: Make your complaint to me either in person, by phone, by letter or in an email (daniel@jerseyosteopath.com).
I will investigate your complaint during the following few days and will aim to:-
1. Find out what happened and what went wrong
2. Make sure you receive an explanation and an apology if this is appropriate
3. Identify what I can do to ensure that this problem does not arise again
Step 2: Institute of Osteopathy Complaints Resolution Service
If you feel uncomfortable complaining directly to me or do not feel that your complaint has been resolved to your satisfaction, you can speak to the Institute of Osteopathy by ringing Freephone 0800 110 5857 or emailing enquries@osteopathy.org
Step 3: General Osteopathic Council
If you are concerned about safety and you wish to instigate a formal complaint with the regulatory body, the General Osteopathic Council can be contacted on 0207 3576655.
Please note that the General Osteopathic Council cannot award compensation.