The National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) (Scotland) Regulations 2018

Records

68.—(1) The contractor must keep adequate patient records of its attendance on and treatment of its patients and must do so—

(a) on forms to be supplied to it for that purpose by the Health Board;

(b) with the written consent of the Health Board, by way of electronic patient records; or

(c) in a combination of those two ways.

(2) The contractor must include in patient records referred to in sub-paragraph (1) clinical reports sent in accordance with paragraph 6 of schedule 6 or from any other health care professional who has provided clinical services to a person on its list of patients.

(3) The consent of the Health Board required by sub-paragraph (1)(b) must not be withheld or withdrawn provided the Health Board is satisfied, and continues to be satisfied, that—

(a) the contractor ensures that the computer system upon which the contractor proposes to keep the electronic patient records is accredited by the Scottish Ministers or another person on their behalf as suitable for that purpose in accordance with a relevant standard issued by the Scottish Ministers;

(b) the security measures, audit and system management functions incorporated into the computer system as accredited in accordance with sub-paragraph (a) have been enabled; and

(c) the contract signed by the contractor contains an obligation requiring the contractor to have regard to any guidelines concerning good practice in the keeping of electronic patient records issued by the Scottish Ministers and notified in writing to the contractor by the Health Board.

(4) Where a patient’s records are electronic patient records, the contractor must, as soon as possible following a request from the Health Board, allow the Health Board to access the information recorded on the contractor’s computer system by means of the audit function referred to in sub‑paragraph (3)(b), to the extent necessary for the Board to confirm that the audit function is enabled and functioning correctly.

(5) The contractor must send the complete patient record relating to a person mentioned in this sub-paragraph to the Health Board—

(a) where a person on its list dies, before the end of a period of 14 days beginning with the date on which it was informed by the Health Board of the death, or (in any other case) before the end of the period of one month beginning with the date on which it learned of the death; or

(b) in any other case where the person is no longer registered with the contractor, as soon as possible, at the request of the Health Board.

(6) To the extent that a patient’s records are electronic patient records, the contractor complies with sub-paragraph (5) if it sends to the Health Board a copy of those records—

(a) in written form; or

(b) with the written consent of the Health Board, in any other form.

(7) The consent of the Health Board to the transmission of information other than in written form for the purposes of sub-paragraph (6)(b) shall not be withheld or withdrawn provided the Health Board is satisfied, and continues to be satisfied, with—

(a) the contractor’s proposals as to how the record will be transmitted;

(b) the contractor’s proposals as to the format of the transmitted record;

(c) how the contractor will ensure that the record received by the Health Board is identical to that transmitted; and

(d) how a written copy of the record can be produced by the Health Board.

(8) A contractor with electronic patient records must not disable, or attempt to disable, either the security measures or the audit and system management functions referred to in sub‑paragraph (3)(b).