Annoyed about sharing details

[Kmz79]

Mental health practitioner at GP is a bit of a useless arse. First meeting I shared a lot with her. Was in for an hour in floods of tears. All she spoke about was her own issues and how great her antiperspirants were and I should take them to feel better. Told her no thanks and she just said come back in a week. Went back and she told me she had made a referral and someone would be in touch. Following day I get a call from a social prescriber from a CIC who told me she had all of my details from the GP. When I questioned her who she was and found out it was a company outside of the NHS is wasn’t too happy and hung up. I’m really angry the MH Practitioner didn’t tell me she was sharing my details with a private company. I’ve since told them I’m not interested and to delete my info but they called twice and left messages telling me they can help with my depression and anxiety. I’m absolutely furious about this. She had no right to share my details without my permission. I assumed when she said make a referral it would be to a NHS service! Sorry for the rant

And I’m also ped off when I look at their website they offer guided walks and yoga. I want referral for therapy to deal with historic abuse, not a fing walk in the woods!

I'm sorry your nurse was a bit useless. But I think you're being unreasonable. She told you she was putting in a referral. The social prescriber will be one commissioned by the NHS. The NHS simply can't provide all services and therefore works in this way throughout the organisation.

It's the same for counselling etc.

The NHS do not employ counsellors, they subcontract it out. Your GP cannot give you counselling themselves and the NHS cannot treat every case of depression or anxiety themselves. It's physically and financially impossible.

NHS mental health services are secondary care. You get referred to counselling services first, usually MIND or Healthy Minds etc.

If these services cannot help you, then you get referred back to secondary care. So either a psychologist or psychiatrist as an outpatient or possibly inpatient care in a mental health unit.

I'm not sure what you wanted her to do tbh. You were offered medication which you didn't want. Then referred to talking therapy which you are angry about so I assume you don't want that either? What is left to offer?

I would have been more happy if she had explained who the referral was to and asked me first, but she had no rights to share my data without my permission. Especially to an organisation I’ve never heard of and is outside of the NHS, isn’t inspected by the CQC.

If you want NHS therapy to deal with abuse I think you should prepare yourself for disappointment.

You get 12 sessions, the first 6 often with a different practitioner than the last 6 and a very long waiting list. Think years in some areas.

I went private in the end, found a therapist who offered sliding scale fees for those on low income. Sexual trauma not actually his specialty so had a few hiccups along the way but a million times more helpful than NHS services were.

Plus be aware that the charities who partner with the NHS will not keep confidentiality if they believe someone to still be a risk. My counsellor from there reported to the police as the person who abused me still has access to young children (his own) and I had to make a statement.

My private counsellor was horrified and said that he categorically would not do that.

I wasn’t referred to talking therapy I was referred to a CIC who provide social prescriptions such as yoga and walks. They’re nothing to do with NHS, it’s a private company and I certainly never consented to my doctors sharing personal details with them! I have tried meds before and they did nothing for me except give me horrendous side effects so won’t be going down that route again.

My problem is she did the referral without asking me first

It’s always been made clear to me by counsellors that they will not keep confidentiality if there is a safeguarding risk.

I’m surprised that your private counsellor didn’t say this to you as it is an absolutely standard requirement of counsellors.

I am sorry this happened.

I think the way to deal with it is to ask the practice manager, in writing, what the practice privacy policy is because you feel there has been a data breach which includes special category data.

This will help you find out if your data was mistreated.

No. He's never disclosed anything I've told him. I wouldn't have ever spoken about it if he had. He has always said that his duty of care is to me first.

He’s right about his duty of care, UNLESS there’s a safeguarding issue.