Written question asked by Stephen O'Brien (Conservative) on Thursday, 25 January 2007, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 29 January 2007. It was answered by Caroline Flint (Labour) on Monday, 19 February 2007 on behalf of the Department of Health.

NHS Spine Project

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether all patients will be able to opt out of having their (a) summary and (b) detailed care record put on (i) the Spine and (ii) any other database other than that of their GP.

Answer: Patients will be able to ask their general practitioners to prevent a summary care record being created for them on the spine, though the Department advises patients to think carefully before requesting this as the summary care record will enable improved national health service care and reduce clinical risk.Detailed care records, however, are held locally within health communities and are not held on the spine. Clinicians are required to keep adequate records for clinical governance and medico-legal reasons and will generally do so within detailed care records systems. As is currently the case, patients will not be able to specify how or where local detailed records are held, though the new systems will enable patients to place restrictions on how these records may be shared or accessed.In some circumstances it may be possible for clinicians to agree to keeping records outside of the detailed care records systems if to do otherwise would cause substantial distress.However, some forms of care, for example blood tests and x-rays, will in future automatically generate records within the detailed care records systems, and if care is dependent upon use of these systems there can be no flexibility for those who receive that care.

Secondary information