Toothbeary

Our Privacy Policy

The practice aims to meet the requirements of the Data Protection Act 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the guidelines on the Information Commissioner’s website as well as our professional guidelines and requirements.

The data controllers are Dr Nicole Sturzenbaum (the owner/principal dentist), the dentists and hygienists/therapists working at Toothbeary.

This Privacy Notice is available on our website www.toothbeary.co.uk, at the reception desk or by email if you contact [email protected]

You will be asked to provide personal information when joining the practice. The purpose of us processing this data is to provide optimum health care to you.

The categories of data we process are:

  • Personal data for the purposes of staff and self-employed team member management
  • Personal data for the purposes of direct mail and email marketing
  • Special category data including health records for the purposes of the delivery of health care
  • Special category data including health records and details of criminal record checks for managing employees and contracted team members

 

We never pass your personal details to a third party unless we have a contract for them to process data on our behalf and will otherwise keep it confidential. If we intend to refer a patient to another practitioner or to secondary care such as a hospital we will gain the individual’s permission before the referral is made and the personal data is shared.

  • Personal data is stored in the EU whether in digital or hard copy format
  • Personal data is obtained when a patient joins the practice, when a patient is referred to the practice and when a patient subscribes to an email list

 

The lawful basis for processing special category data such as patients’ and employees’ health data is:

  • Processing is necessary for the purposes of preventative or occupational medicine, for assessing the working capacity of the employee, medical diagnosis, the provision of health or social care or treatment or management of health or social care systems and services on the basis of Union or Member State law or a contract with a health professional.

 

The lawful basis of processing personal data such as name, address, email or phone number is:

  • Consent of the data subject
  • Processing is necessary for the performance of a contract with the data subject or to take steps to enter into a contract

 

The retention period for special data in patient records is a minimum of 10 years and may be longer for complex records in order to meet our legal requirements. The retention period for staff records is 6 years. The retention periods for other personal data is 2 years after it was last processed. Details of other retention periods are available in the Record Retention procedure available from the practice.

You have the following personal data rights:

  • The right to be informed
  • The right of access
  • The right to rectification
  • The right to erasure (clinical records must be retained for a certain time period)
  • The right to restrict processing
  • The right to data portability
  • The right to object

Further details of these rights can be seen in our Information Governance

Procedures or at the Information Commissioner’s website. Here are some practical examples of your rights:

  • If you are a patient of the practice you have the right to withdraw consent for important notifications, newsletters, surveys or marketing. You can inform us to correct errors in your personal details or withdraw consent from communication methods such as telephone, email or text. You have the right to obtain a free copy of your patient records within one month.
  • If you are not a patient of the practice you have the right to withdraw consent for processing personal data, to have a free copy of it within one month, to correct errors in it or to ask us to delete it. You can also withdraw consent from communication methods such as telephone, email or text.

 

We have carried out a Privacy Impact Assessment and you can request a copy from the details below. The details of how we ensure security of personal data is in our Security Risk Assessment and Information Governance Procedures.

Comments, suggestions and complaints

Please contact Katharina Walter. We take complaints very seriously.

If you are unhappy with our response or if you need any advice you should contact the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). Their telephone number is 0303 123 1113, you can also chat online with an advisor. The ICO can investigate your claim and take action against anyone who’s misused personal data. You can also visit their website for information on how to make a data protection complaint.

Please click here to read our Complaints Procedure.

Patient safety charter

Our practice has a safety culture which means that patient safety is at the forefront of everyone’s minds not only when delivering healthcare but also when setting objectives, developing procedures, purchasing new products and equipment. It is also a culture that is open and fair, where team members can discuss the challenges they face at work for the best interests of our patients. For patient safety we:

  • Follow the latest infection prevention guidelines including those from NHS England
  • Use dental instruments that are single use or are sterilised after use
  • Decontaminate work areas including the dental chair, hand held equipment and cupboard handles, in between patients
  • Maintain a high standard of personal hygiene including clinical clothing and the restricted wearing of jewellery
  • Monitor practice water for quality. Dental unit waterlines are disinfected and kept clear
  • Handle waste according to current regulations and dispose of it with appropriate carriers
  • Take expert advice if a team member may have a blood borne infection. The team member will have an occupational health examination and follow the advice on their role in treating patients

 

All our team members are trained in safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults and follow the practice safeguarding procedures, which are regularly monitored and reviewed.

We run a clinical governance system which uses integrated risk management to identify, assess, analyse and manager all risks and incidents. The goal is continuous improvement in our care and service to you.

The Practice Manager has the overall responsibility at the practice. The team is supported through regular meetings, staff training, personal development and regular appraisals. The practice always welcomes questions, comments and suggestions from patients.

Please contact the practice manager if you have any questions or concerns.

Privacy Policy for Children

The practice keeps records of your name, address, date of birth and details of any health problems as well as details of your dental treatment and details about your family. We keep this information so that we can provide you with the best dental care. Your personal information is kept very confidentially and securely.

We only use your personal information so we can give you the best dental care and for sending reminders to you.

We only pass your personal information to another dentist, doctor or hospital if you have a problem that needs their special skills and you need to go and see them. We will not give your information to anyone else unless the law allows us to or we have to provide it for legal reasons.

If you leave the practice, we will stop using your information, but will keep it confidentially and securely until you are 25 years old, when we will review if and when we can delete it. You can always ask for a copy of the information we hold for you, we can transfer it to another dentist or doctor at your request and you can ask us to stop using your personal information to send letters or contact you in other ways if you are no longer a patient at the practice.

When you reach 18 years of age the Privacy Notice about how we process your personal information will change to the adult version. This can be found on our website.

If you would like a copy of the information we hold about you or if you have any other enquiries it about such as to change an error in your information or to provide a copy of your information to somebody else please contact the practice.