There are several ways to access health records at the Trust.
- Requesting access to your own records
- Requesting access to records as a personal representative of someone who has died or someone who has a claim arising from a patient’s death
- Requesting access to records on behalf of a child or young person
- Requesting access to health records as a third party (i.e. solicitors/ insurance/ medical company/ government agencies / police / external health care professionals)
The Trust is transparent in what information we collect and use (process) about individuals we come into contact with. This is displayed in a Privacy Notice for patients and carers on our public website, and in a Privacy Notice for staff on our intranet.
Requesting access to your own records
To access a copy of your health records, you will need to supply copies of two types of identification from the lists below (one from section A and one from section B)
Section A – Something to prove who you are
- UK Passport
- Passport from eligible countries including EU/EEA
- Driving licence (driving licences without a photo are not accepted)
- EU/EEA National Identity card
- UK birth certificate (under 18s only)
- National Insurance Card (Under 18s only)
- Medical card (under 18s only)
Section B – Something with your current home address (less than three months old)
- Utility bill
- Phone bill
- Local authority council tax bill
- HMRC tax code notification
- Benefits or pensions notification letter confirming the right to benefit
Please complete the Requests for access to records form and send it to us with your identification documents.
By post:
Legal Services – SARs Team
Residence 13
Medway Maritime Hospital
Windmill Road
Gillingham
Kent, ME7 5NY
Or by email: medwayft.sars@nhs.net
If you do not have any of these identification documents, please contact us using the details above and we will try to help.
Requesting access to the health records of someone who has died
The Trust is bound by a duty of confidentiality to ensure that only the representative of a deceased person can access their records.
Access to Health Records Act 1990
Under the Access to Health Records Act 1990, the personal representative of the deceased and people who may have a claim arising from the patient’s death are permitted access to the records. This applies to information provided after November 1991 and disclosure should be limited to that which is relevant to the claim in question.
Access to the health records of a deceased person is restricted to a limited number of people.
What are you entitled to?
You are entitled to see all records made after 1 November 1991 unless:
- in the opinion of the Trust, such disclosure would cause serious harm to the physical or mental health of the applicant or any other individual; or
- the patient had requested that their information is not disclosed after their death.
For this reason, agreement must be sought from Health Professional(s) at the Trust before disclosure can be made.
Records made before 1 November 1991 may be made available on a discretionary basis if these are considered by the Trust to be necessary for the applicant’s understanding of that part of the record to which access is being given.
Please complete the Requests for access to records of the deceased form and send it to us with your identification documents.
By post:
Legal Services – SARs Team
Residence 13
Medway Maritime Hospital
Windmill Road
Gillingham
Kent, ME7 5NY
Or by email: medwayft.sars@nhs.net
Requesting access to health records on behalf of a child or young person
The Information Commissioner’s Office states that parents can make subject access requests on behalf of their children who are too young to make their own request. A young person aged 12 or above is generally considered mature enough to understand what a subject access request is; however, each case will be individually considered.
Children and young people who can make their own informed decisions have a legal right to access their own records, and can allow or prevent access by others, including their parents.*
Any parental access to a child’s records must be in the child’s best interests.
Can non-resident parents have access to their child’s health records?
Separated parents with parental responsibility have as much entitlement to information as non-separated parents. However, if the Trust knows parents are separated, and a request for medical records is obtained from the non-resident parent, we may wish to ensure that the other parent is aware of the request.
Making a request
To access a copy of your child’s health records, you will need to supply copies of two types of identification from the lists below (one from section A and one from section B)
Section A – Something to prove who you are
- UK Passport
- Passport from eligible countries including EU/EEA
- Driving licence (driving licences without a photo are not accepted)
- EU/EEA National Identity card
- UK birth certificate (under 18s only)
- National Insurance Card (Under 18s only)
- Medical card (under 18s only)
Section B – Something with your current home address (less than three months old)
- Utility bill
- Phone bill
- Local authority council tax bill
- HMRC tax code notification
- Benefits or pensions notification letter confirming the right to benefit
* If a child or young person does not agree to disclosure there are still some circumstances in which information can be disclosed for example, when it is in the best interests of the child or young person who does not have the maturity or understanding to make their own decision about disclosure
Please complete the Requests for access to records form and send it to us with your identification documents. Please also include a copy of the child’s birth certificate or their passport if they have their own passport.
By post:
Legal Services – SARs Team
Residence 13
Medway Maritime Hospital
Windmill Road
Gillingham
Kent, ME7 5NY
Or by email: medwayft.sars@nhs.net
If you do not have any of these identification documents, please contact us using the details above and we will try to help.
Third party requests
Solicitors/Insurance/medical companies
Companies acting on behalf of a patient may apply for access to the patient’s records.
The Trust requires written consent from the patient, dated within the last 6 months, to allow their health records to be shared.
We may contact the patient to make sure they fully understand they will be consenting to the release of their health records to a third party.
Government Benefit Agencies
Requests for information may be made by the:
- Department of Work and Pensions
- Veterans Department
- Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority
The Trust requires written consent from the patient to release copies of their notes.
Alternatively, if a patient lacks capacity to make an application themselves, an application may be made on their behalf. This can be:
- A named person with authority under a Personal Welfare Lasting Power of Attorney
- Court Appointed Deputy with specific personal welfare responsibilities
- An appointed Independent Mental Capacity Advocate
What can be requested?
Information which will enable the third party to make a personal welfare decision on behalf of the patient when the patient is unable to do so or information which is required to enable consultation in the best interest of the patient. This will not necessarily include all the patient’s records and will be limited to the information necessary to meet the third party’s responsibilities under the Mental Capacity Act.
To ensure that patient confidentiality is upheld we will require:
- Evidence of your authority to make personal welfare decisions; or
- Evidence of IMCA appointment, as well as evidence of identity
- The reason why information is being requested; and
- Exactly (if possible) what information is required
Making a request as a third party
By post:
Legal Services – SARs Team
Residence 13
Medway NHS Foundation Trust
Medway Maritime Hospital
Windmill Road
Gillingham Kent ME7 5NY
Or by email: medwayft.sars@nhs.net
The Police
Section 29 form for requests for medical records should be sent directly to the Subject Access Request team by email: medwayft.sars@nhs.net
Other Healthcare Professionals
Other healthcare organisations (NHS and private) may request copies of a patient’s record to provide continuity of care for that patient. Please contact the SARS team by email: medwayft.sars@nhs.net
Frequently asked questions
Requests for records are free of charge. However, if the Trust believes your request to be excessive or untruthful:
- We may refuse to deal with your request; or
- We may request a ‘reasonable fee’ to deal with your request, which will be based on the administrative costs of complying with your request.
If we decide to charge a fee, we will notify you of the reasons why and the amount, before completing the request. If we refuse to deal with your request, we will notify you of the reasons why.
We will respond within one month from the date we receive the request, under GDPR guidance. If further information is required, we will write to you within a few days of receiving the request.
We can extend the time to respond by a further two months if the request is complex or we have received several requests from the same person. We will notify you of this within one month of receiving the request and explain the reasons for the extension.
You can be refused access to your records or part of them if:
- your doctor thinks you or someone else could be harmed as a result of providing the information;
- the information relates to, or was provided by, an identified individual apart from yourself or a health professional and it would be unfair to them for you to see that information;
- you are applying on behalf of someone who has died or who is no longer capable of managing their own affairs, but who originally provided the information to the Trust on the understanding that it wouldn’t be revealed later.
If you have followed the process to access health records outlined above, and have a query about your request, please in the first instance contact the SARs team:
By post:
Legal Services – SARs Team
Residence 13
Medway NHS Foundation Trust
Medway Maritime Hospital
Windmill Road
Gillingham Kent ME7 5NY
By email: medwayft.sars@nhs.net
If you subsequently have a concern over how the Trust has processed your request, please contact the Trust’s Data Protection Officer (DPO) via email at medwayft.dpo@nhs.net. The DPO assists the Trust to monitor internal compliance with data protection obligations, and acts as a contact point for individuals and for the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).
If you remain dissatisfied following the outcome of your concern, you may then wish to contact the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO):
Post: Wycliffe House Water Lane Wilmslow Cheshire SK9 5AF
Call: 0303 123 1113
Please note that the Information Commissioner will not normally consider an appeal until you have exhausted your rights of complaint to the Trust directly.
