Hospital contacted birth mum about appt!

[user1479136681]

Hello!

Well we have had our LO placed since March but no AO yet (form has been posted but not processed yet).

After being given the run around when trying to register him at the GP, there have now been 2 incidences where medical professionals have contacted first the foster carer and then the birth mum about our LO!!!

The first time was about a prescription which they called FC to ask about for some reason. We weren't too bothered by this but we complained verbally anyway and were told records had been updated, note added to his file etc so it wouldn't happen again.

This time our GP referred him to the hospital for an appointment, the hospital for some reason needed to cancel it (after a 6 week wait grr!) and they phoned birth mum! Credit to her, she did tell the SW about it. But it is obviously a safeguarding issue and could have been very different if they contacted birth dad. We then complained to the hospital who basically said it is the GP/our fault for not updating the records. But the GP maintains they have updated the records, after we badgered them for ages about it the first time. So we're just being punted back and forth.

Now I am thinking what to do next, make an official written complaint?? I am afraid to take him to the dr again until the AO is through - but even then I don't trust them to get things done properly!

Our SW said "it's always the medical professionals" who do this!!

No advice but my doctors does the same thing with their system. They keep saying they've updated my number, but they haven't because they cancel appts and we don't get the notification, all we get is, is your number 07... no that's my old one.!
I give them my new number and they do it again phone or contact my old one.

I had this issue, the GP surgery insisted they had changed my sons details on their system, I refused to leave until they printed his information, I also refused to confirm our address at the time as I knew they would just change it.

Sure enough the print out showed they hadn’t bothered updating his details and were using the address of his first foster carer.

I would contact the safeguarding lead at your local CCG. They support and manage safeguarding across GPs. I’d also ask for the complaints manager and safeguarding lead at the practice and put your concerns in writing.

I’d come at it from a GDPR point of view, it’s a breach to send personal information to a third party - the GP and the hospital have a legal duty to keep up to date records and protect your son’s confidentiality. Sadly they’re more likely to take a data breach seriously than to think about safeguarding because there are significant fines at stake if they breach data regulations. I’d contact the data manager for both the hospital and the GP and complain and let them sort out between themselves who’s responsible.

No advice but just terrible that this has happened; systems are often poor and it's just not acceptable. Post adoption order, be sure to check your child's NHS number - I wasn't made aware through my adoption training but apparently a child's records are meant to be sealed at that point (only to be opened in case of emergency by medical personnel) and a new NHS number generated. That didn't happen with my LO, and trying to find out who was at fault in order to rectify it was a nightmare, social services couldn't help, GP surgery couldn't help, health visitors couldn't help; terrible experience and basically had (and potentially still have, who knows!) a child who has two different identities and numbers on the NHS system. :(

Thank you so much everyone, I feel like I have a lot of angles of attack now! @thistle52 I didn't know about safeguarding leads so I'll definitely contact them!

I love the idea of using GDPR perspective too and it just so happens I wrote a lot of our GDPR documentation for work so I know it inside out now.

@SimonJT I will ask for a print out too thanks that's great advice! The GP is closed atm because of covid but I can write a complaint until it's open again.

@Giovanna1712 I didn't know about NHS numbers either, I'm sorry you had to deal with all that.

The doctors and even LO's social worker don't really seem to think it's a big deal. We're lucky that birth mum is pretty sound but I'm worried about what they'll reveal or could have. I'll be writing some strongly worded letters tomorrow!

I really don’t get why they get away with doing things like this and brushing it off........!

If teachers did anything like this they’d be seriously told off!!! It’s like some doctors haven’t even heard safeguarding is a thing......