All GP practices in England are contractually required to provide patients with online access to new (prospective) information as it is added to their GP health record unless it would not be provided under GDPR or the patient has informed the practice that they do not, or no longer, wish to have access.
Patients with online accounts should be able to view new entries, including free text, in their health record. This includes details of medications, test results and records of appointments they’ve had with any clinician entering information onto the system. It also includes any correspondence sent into general practice from other providers, such as outpatient clinic letters or discharge summaries.
This requirement relates to new (prospective) record entries and not historic data and applies to the NHS App and all other approved patient facing services apps that provide record access (for example Evergreen, Airmid, SystmOnline and Patient Access).
Offering people access to their health record information helps them to better understand and manage their health and helps to reduce the burden on practice staff by reducing the need for patients having to contact their surgery to get test results and referral notifications.
Further information is available at Access to patient records through the NHS App.
Safeguarding patients
For most patients, online record access is beneficial, but for a minority, having access could cause serious harm or distress. Practices should identify these patients and ensure the right safeguarding processes are in place to support safe access. This includes redacting (hiding) specific information entered into the record or preventing the patient from having access.
GP staff will need to consider the potential impact of each entry, including documents and test results, as they add them to a patient’s record. It is possible to hide entries either temporarily or permanently if considered appropriate, and patients have a right of choice to view their record or not.
Support for GP practices
A range of resources are available to support primary care and other staff with providing safe and effective online prospective record access:
- A GP readiness checklist provides essential actions for enabling and managing online prospective record access. This includes IG guidance, a national template to support Data Protection Impact Assessment and GP system supplier guidance (TPP SystmOne or EMIS Web).
- Materials to help inform patients about having access to their online GP health record. The RCGP GP online services toolkit helps practices provide GP online services effectively, efficiently, safely and securely
- A range of resources, including how-to videos to support staff with providing record access to patients
- Guidance on using Enhanced Review (SNOMED) codes when giving a patient access to their health record
- Guidance for GP staff who will need to consider the potential impact of new record entries, including documents and test results as they add them to a patient’s record, and redact entries as appropriate:
- Information and guidance for staff working in secondary care, mental health and community health services who send correspondence into general practice
Related GPG content
Other helpful resources
- NHS England, The GP contract
- Safeguarding Guidance – NHS Safeguarding workspace
- Online access to GP health records – NHS England Digital.