INFORMATION SHARING
Policy
The Care Worker Agency is required by legislation to work cooperatively with others involved in a customer’s care in order to ensure that appropriate care planning takes place, including having suitable arrangements to share information appropriately and safely with other providers, agencies and/or individuals.
In addition, the company is also required to share relevant and appropriate information at such times as is necessary for example, in the event of an emergency and/or where a customer’s care is transferred to another provider and/or agency. This may include where a customer is admitted, transferred or discharged to and from another service such as a hospital, care home to another agency or back home from any of these services.
The policy and procedure for sharing information must however comply with other legislation such as the Data Protection Act, GDPR and the Freedom of Information Act; and will ensure the privacy, confidentiality and rights of each individual customer.
All incidents requiring notification to the regulator or other agencies (for example local authority safeguarding referrals) must not identify any person and a unique identifier or code must be used and a record kept of such codes at the office as required by the CQC (Care Quality Commission). (Please refer to the Incident and Accident reporting policy).
Procedure
In order to ensure that information is appropriately shared and emergency situations responded to:
- The care manager will be the identified lead person (and/or the most senior person on duty in the case of an emergency).
- Customers and/or people acting on their behalf will always have the necessary on-call information should they need to contact The Care Worker Agency in the case of an emergency.
- Concerns around a customer’s mental capacity must be responded to in line with the principles of the Mental Capacity Act and the best interests of the customer promoted. Consultation should take place with significant others in this respect including advocates, other professionals and/or agencies and any person acting on the customer’s behalf.
- The customers’ care plan will detail the arrangements to be followed in the event of an emergency and/or transfer and will include the relevant information to ensure a coordinated response.
- The care manager/identified lead person will provide the minimum required information as set out by the regulator to the other provider/agency and as detailed in Appendix 1 of this procedure.
- The information shared must be factual, correct and not include subjective opinions about the customer and must be in accordance with the Data Protection Act.
- The information must be transferred in a timely, secure and confidential manner and the customer and/or their representative must consent to and be made fully aware of this.
- A customer has the right to request and be provided with a copy of the information being transferred/shared.
- Where consent cannot be obtained for example in an emergency situation, the reasons for this should be clearly documented in the customer’s records.
- The care manager/identified lead should receive signed confirmation from the receiving party that the information has been received and record made in the customer's’ file including the date, time and details of the information shared and with whom.
Information lost, transferred incorrectly or inappropriately shared
In the event that a customer's information is lost, transferred incorrectly or shared inappropriately, staff must immediately notify the care manager (or director) of the company.
The care manager must put in place a containment and recovery plan, investigate and establish the following:
- The customer's’ details and any representative(s);
- The nature/type of the information involved;
- The person(s) involved (including The Care Worker Agency staff);
- The time and all facts/details relating to the event;
- Whether the event involves a potential criminal element (and if so, the staff involved should make the relevant report to the police – for example, if their car was broken into).
- The risks associated with the incident, any potential adverse consequences for individuals, the seriousness of these and how likely they are to happen.
The care manager must advise the customer and/or their representative of the event and complete an incident report in line with policy. Relevant other parties should be notified taking into consideration the nature of the information and potential risks, such as the police, regulatory bodies, Information Commissioner's Office, banks, etc
For information inappropriately shared or transferred, the care manager must take steps to rectify the situation by contacting the agency/others in receipt of the information to inform them of the error and request that the information be destroyed. The care manager should request confirmation in writing that such action has been taken by the receiving parties.
The customer and/or their representative must be fully informed of the outcome as well as the relevant regulatory bodies.
The company must undertake a review of the overall event and circumstances relating to it and review the company policy and procedures as required. This might include a consideration around any aspects of staff competence, training or practice issues identified as part of the review.
We are registered with the ICO so please see their guidelines on when to report to them in the event of a data breech.
APPENDIX 1
MINIMUM INFORMATION TO BE SHARED
The Care Quality Commission’s Fundamental Standards state that the minimum information required for transfer purposes is:
- Customer’s name
- Gender
- Date of birth
- Address
- Unique identification number where one exists
- Emergency contact details
- Any person(s) acting on behalf of the customer with contact details
- Records of care, treatment and support provided up to the point of transfer
- Assessed needs
- Known preferences and any relevant diverse needs
- Previous medical history that is relevant to the person's current needs including GP contact details
- Any infection that needs to be managed
- Any medicine they need to take
- Any allergies they have
- Key contact in the service the person is leaving
- Reason for transferring to the new service
- Any advance decision
- Any assessed risk of suicide and homicide, harm to self or others
Reviewed in April 2025 by Fay Townsend-Jackson