NHS App
Try the NHS App. If you’re a patient at our practice you can now use the NHS App, a simple and secure way to access a range of NHS services on your smartphone or tablet. You can use the NHS App to get health advice, order repeat prescriptions, manage your hospital referrals, view your GP health record and more. If you already use Patient Access you can continue to use it but you can use the NHS App as well. For more information go to www.nhs.uk/nhsapp.
What the NHS App does
- get advice about coronavirus – get information about coronavirus and find out what to do if you think you have it.
- order repeat prescriptions – see your available medicines, request a new repeat prescription and choose a pharmacy for your prescriptions to be sent to.
- book appointments – search for, book and cancel appointments at your GP surgery, and see details of your upcoming and past appointments.
- check your symptoms – search trusted NHS information and advice on hundreds of conditions and treatments, and get instant advice or medical help near you.
- register your organ donation decision – choose to donate some or all of your organs and check your registered decision.
- find out how the NHS uses your data – choose if data from your health records is shared for research and planning.
- view parts of your GP record – including information about medication, allergies, vaccinations, previous illnesses and test results.
If you’re a patient at our practice you can use the NHS App, a simple and secure way to access a range of NHS services on your smartphone or tablet.
Get the app
Non-urgent advice: Having Problems?
You can still contact the practice by phone or in person, this is just another option, which other patients have found is more convenient and saves them time. More information including “how to” leaflets and videos of patients and why they are using GP online services are available at www.nhs.uk/gponlineservices
Online Consultation
SystmOnline
Online services allow you to:
- book, check or cancel appointments with a GP, nurse or other healthcare professional
- order repeat prescriptions
- see parts of your health record, including information about medicines, vaccinations and test results
- see communications between your GP surgery and other services, such as hospitals
How to register for Online Services
If you have not used our online services before you will need to:
- Contact the surgery by phone or in person
- Verify your identity
- Secure a username and password
- Enter SystmOnline and enter your registration details exactly as shown on the form.
- After registering, log on with your username and password.
SystmOnline
Non-urgent advice: Having Problems?
Proxy Access for children & young adults
Proxy access is a way for parents or guardians to manage health and care for children online while they are growing up, until they are old enough to do it on their own. This can be done either through the NHS App or SystmOnline/Airmid, once it has been set up via your GP Surgery.
Information for children & young adults:
The information in your health record is called health data. It is important data about you and must be kept safe so that only the right people can see it.
There are laws that protect your data. Children have the same right as adults – you own your data. But until you are 16, your parents or guardians have the right to manage this for you.
At The Grove Medical Centre, from the age of 13, if you would still like your parent or guardian to manage your health record for you then you need to fill out a proxy access form to give your permission. There is also a section for your parent or guardian to fill out. Once you have completed this form, your parent or guardian will be able to access your health data until you turn 16. At this point, you will need to set up your own access.
What your parent or guardian may be able to see or do for you
You can choose what your parent or guardian is able to see or do for you. For example, you may want them to be able to get your medicines but not to see your notes. You are also able to have more than one person to help you and can decide what each of them have access to.
You can give access to be able to:
- look at, make, and cancel appointments
- see your medicines (prescriptions) and order them for you
- see your test results and other medical information about any illnesses, conditions or allergies
- see letters from doctors, hospitals and any other places you go to get care
- see what the doctor has written in your record when you go to an appointment (consultation notes)
What to do if you’re worried about your parent or guardian seeing something in your medical information
You have the right to confidentiality – this means you can keep things private if you want.
If you have agreed to you parent or guardian having access to your record but would like to see the doctor privately, you can do this when you make or go to an appointment.
They are able to hide some parts of your medical information if there is something you don’t want shared.
It’s usually best to keep the adults you trust involved in your health and care so the doctor may encourage you to share this information. But unless they think you are at serious risk of harm, they have to respect your decisions around privacy.
How to stop or change access
Allowing proxy access to your medical record is a personal choice and you can change your decision at any time. You can do this by either phoning or emailing the practice, in person at the reception desk, or via the contact form on our website.
Proxy access is automatically turned off once you turn 16, you can request for it to be kept on by completing another proxy access form.
Tel: 01935 810900
Email: tgmc.reception@nhs.net
Website: thegrovemedcentre.co.uk
Information for parents / guardians:
You can have online access to your child’s medical record so that you can order their medication, book appointments etc up until the age of 13.
However after age 13 the patient needs to give permission for the access to be granted to you – by completing a Proxy access form. When the patient turns 16 this access is removed again, and permission would need to be asked for again if there were circumstances which meant at 16, the patient was unable to access their own medical information.
Patients aged 16 or above are assumed to have the capacity to consent unless there is an indication that they do not. Patients between the ages of 13 and 16 are usually considered to have capacity, unless they have for example a medical condition or learning disability that affects their understanding. In this instance their GP would usually give access based on the best interests of the child.
The adult wanting proxy access does not need to be registered here but must be registered for online services with their practice and always use their own login details.
Information on assessing competency
GPs can assess competence using the Gillick competency and Fraser guidelines. These refer to a legal case in the 1980s which looked at whether doctors should be able to give contraceptive advice or treatment to young people under 16 without parental consent. The Fraser guidelines apply to advice and treatment relating to contraception and sexual health, whereas Gillick competency is used to assess whether a child has the maturity to make their own decisions and understand the implications of those decision.
Gillick Competence
There are no defined questions to assess Gillick competency but clinicians will consider several things, including:
- The child’s age, maturity and mental capacity
- Their understanding of the nature and implications of any proposed treatment
- Their understanding of the risks, implications and consequences that may arise
- How well they understand the advice or information they have been and their understanding of any alternative options that may be available.
Fraser Guidelines
Clinicians will always try to get the patient to inform their parents or guardians but can use these guidelines where the patient cannot be persuaded to do so.
They will also satisfy themselves of the following:
- The patient understands the advice being given
- Their physical or mental health or both are likely to suffer unless they receive the advice or treatment
- It is in their best interests to receive the advice, treatment or both without their parents’ or guardians’ consent
- They are very likely to continue to have sex with or without contraceptive treatment.