USE OF INFORMATION

Outlook South West provides Psychological Therapy as part of a nationwide programme. So that we and the NHS can make sure we are doing the best job possible, we need to collect information about patient treatment.

What information do we have to collect?

 
We collect information about you and the care you receive. This includes scores on questionnaires and information about your current problems. This helps your progress to be monitored and your care planned. Brief information which is relevant for improving your care is routinely shared with your GP. Information is only shared with other health and social care professionals where it is relevant for your care or there are serious concerns about safety for yourself or someone else. If you would like to know more about this, please speak to your therapist or contact our head office.

How and what information is collected nationally?

 
Some information is reported nationally to give a picture of how services compare across the country, to check that all quality standards are met.

It is impossible to identify any individual person in the information used in national reports.

Reports only show summary numbers, such as patients receiving different types of treatments.

Other information checked nationally makes sure:

* services are available to those who are eligible

* a range of evidence based treatments is provided

* patients have positive experiences of services

How we keep your information safe?

We store all information safely and securely. Data is collected under strict rules of confidentiality, as required by the Data Protection Act 1998, the Health and Social Care Act 2012, the NHS Care Record Guarantee and other guidance. If you wish to find out more, or to access your own records, please contact our office on 01208 871905, email us at enq@outlooksw.co.uk, or write to our head office, Outlook South West, 2D Restormel Estate, Lostwithiel, Cornwall PL22 0HG.

Do we need to use your information?

 
For accuracy it is important to report information from as many patients as possible. If you prefer your data to be left out please tell your therapist or our head office who will ensure your information is not used. This will not affect your treatment in any way.