Who do I send a Freedom of Information request to for Norwich and Norfolk CCGs?

If you’re interested in information relating to either Norwich CCG (clinical commissioning group), South Norfolk CCG, North Norfolk CCG, West Norfolk CCG or HealthEast CCG, and cannot get information directly, you’ll need to send a Freedom of Information request to the local Primary Care Trust – Great Yarmouth and Waveney PCT.

The email address to do so is gyw-pct.foi@nhs.netContinue reading

What’s your local CCG doing? A quick guide

Philip John is one of the users of Help Me Investigate looking at his local clinical commissioning group (CCG), for which there isn’t much information (there isn’t even a website).

Here’s why: CCGs are being authorised in four waves, which take place from this month through to March 2013. In addition to those four waves, there are dozens of CCGs which were already operating as ‘pathfinder’ groups – in other words, pilots.

You can find out which wave your CCG is in by searching for it in this document (PDF). Continue reading

How does the General Medical Council work?

The General Medical Council [GMC] was established by the Medical Act 1858 and is entrusted with regulating the UK’s medical profession. It is also a fee-based Charity [Number 1089278].

Despite its role in investigating alleged misconduct and imposing sanctions on doctors who step out of line, the GMC is not a court. Rather, it is a quasi-judicial body, as established by GMC v BBC 1998.

The distinction is subtle, but significant in respect of which laws apply to the GMC’s actions. Continue reading

VIDEO: Heather Brooke on using the Data Protection Act to access your records

As part of a series of interviews for Help Me Investigate Health, Freedom of information (FOI) campaigner and investigative journalist Heather Brooke gives her tips on using the Data Protection Act to access information about yourself, including mentions in internal correspondence or other files.

Welsh Government to publish data on patients’ funding requests (and tips)

WalesOnline reports on confirmation by the Welsh Government that it is to publish data on patients’ requests for funding for drugs, following FOI requests that revealed “large disparities in the number of requests for funding for cancer drugs not approved by the All-Wales Medicines Strategy Group (AWMSG) or the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice).

“Some health boards refused two-thirds of these funding requests, while others declined just 15%.”

The data is to be published on a health board basis, rather than at a national level. Continue reading