Practice News

Complaints and the Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

We welcome feedback and complaints, and we want to understand your experience in your own words.

We are committed to handling complaints fairly, openly and compassionately, in line with the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman’s NHS Complaint Standards.

Some people choose to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools to help write complaints or emails. We understand that these tools can be helpful in organising thoughts or expressing concerns.

However, AI-generated text can sometimes:

• include information that is inaccurate or not relevant.
• use overly formal or legal language.
• make complaints longer or more complex than necessary; or
• make it harder for us to clearly understand your personal experience.

This can occasionally delay our review or mean we need to contact you to clarify the details before we can respond fully.

The most helpful complaints are usually clear and concise, and explain:

• what happened.
• when it happened;
• how it affected you; and
• what you would like us to do to resolve the matter.

A short explanation in your own words is often more helpful than a long or highly formal letter.   However, if you choose to use AI tools, we recommend that you:

• check the wording carefully to ensure it reflects your own experience;
• remove any information that is inaccurate or not relevant; and
• take care when including sensitive personal information.

Please be aware that some AI tools may store or use information entered into them.  For further guidance on using AI to support a complaint, you may find this resource from the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman helpful:  here

If you need support to make a complaint—for example due to language needs, disability, learning disability, or mental health or communication difficulties—please let us know. We will do our best to support you in a way that works for you.

Investigation Requests from External Providers

1. Tests Done by Others: If you had a test done by someone who is not a clinician from our practice (like a private provider or a service abroad), please contact the person who ordered the test for its interpretation and any further action. It is their responsibility to manage your care based on that test. 

2. Sharing Test Results with Us: If you bring test results from another provider to your appointment with us, we will consider them as part of your assessment if we think they are relevant. However, if it is a test we are unfamiliar with or would not have recommended, we may ask you to go back to the person who ordered it for further advice. 

3. NHS Guidelines on Tests: NHS guidelines advise us not to order tests that we believe are unnecessary or to repeat tests that have already been done. Therefore, we usually cannot repeat tests on the NHS that were arranged privately. If we find those private test results important, we may use them in your care, but it is your responsibility to provide us with the complete results. 

4. Do Not Send Test Results for Interpretation: Please do not send us test results expecting a response or interpretation. If you feel unwell and need support, call our practice to discuss booking an appointment. 

Sharp Boxes

We can no longer accept sharp boxes at the surgery.  If you need a box collected, please request the appropriate letter from the surgery.  You will need to send the letter to the council to arrange collection.

Meningitis

Please see www.nhs.uk/conditions/meningitis/vaccinations

Meningitis B vaccinations are available in the routine vaccination schedule for babies and under 2 years. Meningitis B vaccination has only been available for about 10 years in the routine schedule, if your child is older than 10 years, they won’t have received it.

Meningitis ACWY is available from year 9 in secondary school- up to the age of 25 years.

If you or your children are out of the age ranges stated above then you cannot receive vaccinations. They may be available privately.

Segmentation

Johns Hopkins adjusted clinical groups score

You may notice a test result appear in your NHS app referring to Johns Hopkins adjusted clinical groups score. Johns Hopkins segmentation system is a simple way of categorising patients based on their specific health needs. It helps us as a practice understand the individual needs of our patients based on their health and wellbeing to support personalised care and ensures you get the right support in a timely way.

For more information, please follow this link:

Segmentation

Mounjaro

Published on 18th Jul 2025

Data Opt Out

We have been asked to share the following important information with you. 

This practice is supporting vital health and care planning and research by sharing your data with NHS Digital. For more information about this see the GP Practice Privacy Notice for General Practice Data for Planning and Research." =

https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/data-collections-and-data-sets/data-collections/general-practice-data-for-planning-and-research

This collection will start on 1 July 2021

If you do not want your data to be shared with NHS Digital please register your Type 1 Opt-out with your GP practice by 23 June 2021.

What data is shared:

Data may be shared from the GP medical records about:

• any living patient registered at a GP practice in England when the collection started - this includes children and adults
• any patient who died after 1 July 2021, and was previously registered at a GP practice in England when the data collection started

NHS Digital will not collect patients’ names or addresses. Any other data that could directly identify patients (such as NHS Number, date of birth, full postcode) is replaced with unique codes which are produced by de-identification software before the data is shared with NHS Digital.

This process is called pseudonymisation and means that patients will not be identified directly in the data. NHS Digital will be able to use the software to convert the unique codes back to data that could directly identify patients in certain circumstances, and where there is a valid legal reason.

If you would prefer that your identifiable patient data is only shared for your own health care purposes, you can opt-out by registering a Type 1 Opt-out or a National Data Opt-out, or both.

 These opt-outs are different and they are explained in more detail below. Your individual care will not be affected if you opt-out using either option (or both).

A Type 1 opt out has to be registered by your Practice; please let us know if you want to register a type 1 opt out.  

A National Opt out can be done without contacting your practice, at https://www.nhs.uk/your-nhs-data-matters/

Type 1 Opt-out (opting out of NHS Digital collecting your data)

NHSD will not collect data from GP practices about patients who have registered a Type 1 Opt-out with their practice. More information about Type 1 Opt-outs is in the GP Data for Planning and Research Transparency Notice, including a form that you can complete and send to your GP practice.

This collection will start on 1 July 2021 so if you do not want your data to be shared with NHS Digital, please register your Type 1 Opt-out with your GP practice by 23 June 2021.

If you register a Type 1 Opt-out after this collection has started, no more of your data will be shared with NHSD. They will however still hold the patient data which was shared before you registered the Type 1 Opt-out.

If you do not want NHS Digital to share your identifiable patient data with anyone else for purposes beyond your own care, then you can also register a National Data Opt-out.

National Data Opt-out (opting out of NHS Digital sharing your data with other organizations)

NHSD will collect data from GP medical records about patients who have registered a National Data Opt-out. The National Data Opt-out applies to identifiable patient data about your health, which is called confidential patient information.

NHS Digital won’t share any confidential patient information about you - this includes GP data, or other information, such as hospital data - with other organisations, unless there is an exemption to this.

To find out more information and how to register a National Data Opt-Out, please read NHSD GP Data for Planning and Research Transparency Notice.

= https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/data-collections-and-data-sets/data-collections/general-practice-data-for-planning-and-research/transparency-notice

ALL MEMBERS OF THE HOUSEHOLD

The data held in your GP medical records is shared with other healthcare professionals for the purposes of your individual care. It can also be shared with other organisations to support health and care planning and research.

If you do not want your personally identifiable patient data to be shared outside of your GP practice for purposes except your own care, you can register an opt-out with your GP practice. This is known as a Type 1 Opt-out.

a National Data Opt-out which is not done at GP practice level; for this, you must contact NHS Digital - more information about the National Data Opt-out is here: https://www.nhs.uk/your-nhs-data-matters/

You can use this form to:

• register a Type 1 Opt-out, for yourself or for a dependent (if you are the parent or legal guardian of the patient) (to Opt-out)
• withdraw an existing Type 1 Opt-out, for yourself or a dependent (if you are the parent or legal guardian of the patient) if you have changed your preference (Opt-in)

This decision will not affect individual care and you can change your choice at any time, using this form. This form, once completed, should be sent to your GP practice by email or post.

Yours faithfully

Long Furlong Medical Centre

Details of the patient

Details of parent or legal guardian

If you are filling in this form on behalf of a dependent e.g. a child, the GP practice will first check that you have the authority to do so.  Please complete the details below:

Your decision

Opt-out  

I do not allow my identifiable patient data to be shared outside of the GP practice for purposes except my own care.

Withdraw Opt-out (Opt back in))

I do allow my identifiable patient data to be shared outside of the GP practice for purposes beyond my own care.

Your declaration

I confirm that:

• the information I have given in this form is correct
• I am the parent or legal guardian of the dependent person I am making a choice for set out above (if applicable)

Signature

Date signed

When complete, please post or send by email to receptionists.longfurlong@nhs.net

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For GP Practice Use Only