The General Practice Data for Planning and Research system was set up by the British National Health Service as a replacement for the

General Practice Extraction Service The General Practice Extraction Service (GPES or GP Extraction Service) was a British health service outcomes research computer database that collates statistical aggregated data (demographic cohorts) from individual medical records of GPs in Engl ...

as a means of transmitting data intended for use beyond that of providing individual health care. This might include healthcare planning, or research. It was announced on 21 May 2021, It received a cautious welcome for the potential benefits to Health Research, particularly as large scale medical data is providing valuable data on the most effective treatments for

Covid-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

Privacy and implementation concerns

Amongst patients and the general public concerns have been raised about sale of NHS data to private companies. The ''

Pulse In medicine, a pulse represents the tactile arterial palpation of the cardiac cycle (heartbeat) by trained fingertips. The pulse may be palpated in any place that allows an artery to be compressed near the surface of the body, such as at the nec ...

'' magazine - distributed to general practitioners in the UK, carried articles reflecting concern about the scope of the data being collected and the additional workload and legal risks it would impose on GPs Responsibility for informing patients was devolved to GP Practices, for example by updating the Privacy Notice on their website. Doctors urged a delay in introduction due to these concerns

Opt out

Patients can out of NHS data sharing at two levels, firstly then can ask their GP not to share data with NHS digital for purposes of research and planning, called a Type 1 Opt Out, and secondly they can opt out of NHS Digital sharing - the National Data Opt Out. The Type 1 Opt Out was implemented by the patient filling out a downloadable paper form and returning it to their GP,

Implementation delay

The process of making GP data available to NHS Digital for wider use was due to begin on 1 July 2021, but was delayed until 1 September It has now been delayed until four criteria have been met # the ability to delete data if patients choose to opt-out of sharing their GP data with NHS Digital, even if this is after their data has been uploaded # the backlog of opt-outs has been fully cleared # a Trusted Research Environment has been developed and implemented in NHS Digital # patients have been made more aware of the scheme through a campaign of engagement and communication

Data security and governance

From the GP Data for Planning and Research: Letter from Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Health and Social Care to general practices in England - 19 July 2021

References

{{Reflist

External links

General Practice Data for Planning and Research (GPDPR)

How to opt out , medConfidential

use MY data - 94

Our perspective on the new system for GP data , Understanding patient data

OpenSAFELY: Home
Databases in England Department of Health and Social Care Medical databases in the United Kingdom