I know lots of people struggle to get access to their digital GP records despite recent GP contract changes. The following information is for patients within NHS England.
I have continued to chase digital access problems and I have discovered that GP Practices are not good at transferring your digital records if you change GP Practice for any reason.
There is a transfer system called GP2GP and there is a transfer window. If transfer is not done within the transfer window only paper records are transferred.
Many practices don’t scan relevant information from the paper record onto the new digital record. This results in the creation of a new digital record with no access to historical data. The issue is attracting attention and this week NHS ENGLAND has released a webpage where you can check how efficient named GP Practices are.
There are significant numbers of Practices that fail to process 100% of new patients. If you have moved to one of these practices this is possibly why you have poor digital access and no historical records to show. The extent of this failure is only just being recognised.
The data is only available for recent months as it is new. Our family Practice shows a 100% transfer rate, however in February this year my husbands digital record was not transferred. His digital record starts February 2021.
Written by
DJR1
To view profiles and participate in discussions please or .
Thank you for that information. I have been having a huge problem since my practice merged with another one, I have no idea what has gone wrong and despite me contacting NHS technical services and taking a paper copy of their response and how to solve the problem , they are still not able to connect my records to my phone. I can access my record on my home laptop but cannot see anything on my phone, I have deleted the app ( on their and the practices suggestion ) and reloaded it numerous times but it doesn't make any difference, I have had long email conversations with the technical team but am still no further forward .
The GP practice has no idea how to solve it either, they said that the NHS bods never give them any help when changes are made. The only record I have of my covid vaccination status is on the ZOE app and on my computer at home ( which isn't much help when I'm out and about !).
I think there have been a lot of Practice mergers and this has created huge difficulties. Your problem is interesting as the Practice settings must be okay if you can access records on your laptop but not on your phone. Which App are you using?
It's the NHS app, The only thing that I have on it is my name , DoB and my NHS number, I can't get any further into it to access anything from my GP records, it's really frustrating because no one seems able to solve it .
Hi DJR1 I can log in via patient access on my laptop and that means I can access my records ( limited though they are!)and order repeat prescriptions , appointments etc..I have the NHS app downloaded on my phone and the separate NHS covid 19 app on my phone too, I can get my covid pass on the NHS app and this displays a QR code and I have just discovered that it shows my vaccination record , which is up to date . It is the rest of my GP information that I can't access. Thanks for trying to help. I think the problem stems from the merger of the practice with another one.
Ah I see so two different Apps. Patient Access on the laptop and NHS App on the phone.
Did you go through the complete registration set up on the NHS App which involves the video, ID using official documents etc and then inputting the Practice ID and GP key linkage key? It sounds like you have only basic access and it is not linked to your GP Practice????
I am presuming you have enhanced access for Patient Access to enable you to see test results, consultation detail etc. Did you fill in an application form and set up linkage keys etc when you started with Patient Access? The NHS App needs the same Practice ID and linkage codes to connect it.
If the Patient Access works, it means the Patient and Practice settings are correct. This means it should allow the information to flow through to the NHS App automatically. There are not separate settings for each App. I am therefore wondering if there is a registration glitch. Apologies if you have done all of this!
I set up the patient access via the practice using linkage codes etc... and I think the NHS app on my phone was via my driving licence or passport information, the practice merged with a bigger practice after I had done that and that is where my problems started, the fact that neither the NHS technicians or my practice are able to sort it out makes me think that something somewhere along the line has gone wrong but no one knows how to fix it sadly. I have never had to use a linkage code for the phone app when I entered my NHS no. it linked to me but I couldn't get any further.I have tried all sorts of things and have given up, I also have no medical records for the first 40 years of my life... my friend who is a retired GP has had two hysterectomies !! so it does make you wonder where the information comes from or who is entering it on our records.
It’s so frustrating isn’t it. One of my drivers for access to medical records is correcting errors and having a comprehensive medical record that can be shared by ourselves to any health provider we meet. If only! We have newish digital records as the previous were not transferred. The paper records are muddled with large parts lost and stored off site from our GP surgery. It’s a shambles.
I suspect the Practice ID and linkage keys have changed with the merger of the Practices and for some reason around this the NHS App is not connecting to your Practice Record. I do know of other mergers where the GP system database has disabled all patient access to online services. It might be resolved in time after the merger has settled.
I would try deleting your NHS Login and re-creating it, if you haven't already. Like DJR1 says this sounds like a registration issue. If you've tried that already, ask the surgery to generate a new linkage key and try and use that (unless you've tried that already too).
If transfer of records between practices within England are in such a mess, I wonder if this would be just as bad for people who relocate to any of the other UK nations (e.g. from England to Wales).
I've been with my current surgery for nearly 25 years. I'm assuming this is completely irrelevant to me, assuming I don't change surgeries?
I have bought a copy of my records (about 7 years ago) and although they aren't remotely complete they are a lot better than many I've heard about.
For example, I lived in Wales for a couple of years, and I did use doctors during that time, but you wouldn't know I'd ever been there given what I was provided with when I bought my records.
I also spent many years living in Scotland, and although much is missing, there is at least an acknowledgement that I was there.
Hi DJR1, I read your post with interest. I think there is still such wide variance in how much different practices allow patients to see. My own GP practice puts all results/documents and even what the GP types into the system during an appointment. So useful and symptomatic of a practice that encourages a dialogue about care. My mum’s practice allows repeat prescription requests online and nothing else. The other day I asked my mum when her last thyroid function test was. She didn’t know and I certainly couldn’t find that information online so we ended up calling the receptionist to check. My partner’s practice lies somewhere between the two but not that helpful. Once again, we have had to bother reception staff when we should have been able to find the info online.
That’s interesting as the variation between GP Practices was essentially brought to an end with a revision of the GP contract in April 2020. It is now mandatory for all GP Practices within NHS England to switch on access to all sections of the digital record except historical free text which must be given at the request of the patient. The relevant section of the GP contract is recorded in my previous posts.
A further recent development is that GP systems will have an automatic default to switch on all consultation detail and online functions described in the contract irrespective of the GP’s views. The first date for the automatic switch on for prospective data is TPP Systmone on the 1st December 2021 but the opposition has been keen and there is currently some discussion about this and a delay is expected until next year. I will post on this when I have more information.
GP Practices are independent businesses and only contracted to work for the NHS. To ensure consistency, the new GP contract specified access to personal records to ensure equity of access. If a GP Practice does not provide all details of consultations, test results medication details, vaccination details etc they are in breech of their NHS contract. This information as usual is only applicable to those Practices within England. My advice to those within NHS England who are unable to see test results, consulting detail etc is to speak to the Practice Manager with reference to the GP contract. Application for enhanced access must be done to see all online services, forms are usually available from the surgery.
i rang my surgery six months ago to ask how I could gain access to my online records and was told, quite abruptly, ...We do not offer that service at this surgery.
Do you live in England? If you do your surgery is in breach of the GP contract. The next step would be to print off the contract and ask for the access described. If this fails contact the NHS complaints team at
england.contactus@nhs.net
There are numerous practices that do this and to bring in some standardisation there is a plan to automatically switch on access to EMIS and TPP GP systems on 1 April. However I am hearing that there are objections again so it may be delayed. The original date of 1 December 2021 failed due to GP opposition. This advice does not apply to Scotland, wales or NI
Text describing mandatory contractual requirements of the GP contract
Content on HealthUnlocked does not replace the relationship between you and doctors or other healthcare professionals nor the advice you receive from them.
Never delay seeking advice or dialling emergency services because of something that you have read on HealthUnlocked.
NHS are about to share your data 
