So, I have been with my GP practice for 16 years. I have recently turned 18, and went to book an appointment today. On the phone I was told that I was not registered at the surgery and I had switched in July. I was not even 18 in July. After that, I went to the surgery to find out what had happened. They told me the same thing, and I explained I had never switched over. They told me the GP that I was now assigned to, but I genuinely have no clue where that even is. The receptionist blamed NHS England for this happening and I was given a registration form. I filled it out and handed over my passport and proof of address and was told that it would take up to 3 working days to be registered. What has happened to my files? Has my information just been shared to this random GP I had never even heard of nor know where it is? Does anyone know why this has happened? Any advice appreciated. 🙂
5 comments
Thats sounds like an epic GDPR failure.
I would write to the practice managers at both surgeries and ask two things. (a) How did this happen, as someone must have authorised and instigated a change to your personal data without your knowledge; and (b) revert you immediately to your original practice.
I would also like to add, I had recently been prescribed new medication but cannot even receive it due to this happening! I have had to email the doctor to inform them and it means I have to wait longer just to get it. Very upset about this as I have waited over 6 months to get this medication.
Is the surgery part of another group? Are they even nearby? Mine is partnered with two. So if they are part of the same group they could split the patients if you lived closer to one boundary. If they are miles away or not even in your part of the country this sounds like a massive fuck up.
Don’t worry about it.
Your records should all be digital. So it’s not like they’re a folder of paper that’s been lost in the post or lost to a random surgery. But unfortunately for some reason they’ve probably been sent to another surgery. Luckily access to your records will be strictly limited to people who need to access them and even then, they can only access them if they have a reason too. So basically your records are probably a folder on their computer, that they’ve never even opened. Hopefully that’s some reassurance that you’re not bumping into a random person in Tesco’s who works at that surgery who knows your entire medical history.