PIP tribunal asked for medical consent form
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sara021
Community member Posts: 1 Listener
I have attended my first tribunal because my award has been changed due to re assessment, but they could not come to a decision and they think there is lack of evidence to support my claim. They have asked me to give them consent to access my medical records. I can ask my practitioners to provide them with the requested evidence to back up my claim but they have not asked for this instead they want consent to access my medical records.
Do you think i should give consent ? i have sensitive and private conversation that has nothing to do with my appeal and i do not wish others to see it because i will feel ashamed and embarrassed and i have trusted my Doctor to keep it confidential.
I dont know what to do now and do not know what to response to this consent form matter.
Do you think i should give consent ? i have sensitive and private conversation that has nothing to do with my appeal and i do not wish others to see it because i will feel ashamed and embarrassed and i have trusted my Doctor to keep it confidential.
I dont know what to do now and do not know what to response to this consent form matter.
Comments
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Hi @sara021, and welcome to the community!
Thanks for sharing this with us, it sounds like a really difficult situation to be in. If you feel that you don't want to share your records, that right to confidentiality is entirely yours. Asking your practitioners to provide requested evidence, as you suggested, might be something worth trying if you're more comfortable with this. Keep us updated and let us know how you get on! -
Dear Sarah
I am in a similar situation, in that, as part of my tribunal, I have to prove that I have a disability under the Equality Act. My former employer's solicitor initially demanded complete access to all my GP records. During the prelim hearing, I protested that this was an unnecessary invasion of my privacy. A compromise was reached, with guidance from the judge, where only the records relevant to the disability are to be disclosed. Their solicitor sent me a consent form, which I did not fully agree with, so I have re-written it, to specify which records are included and who will have access. The Access to Medical Reports Act gives you the right to consent or not consent to someone accessing to your medical records (and it doesn't happen if you do not consent). I am taking the interpretation that it follows that you have the right to specify which PARTS of your medical records you consent to disclosing (although I have struggled to find any confirmation of this interpretation). It remains to be seen how their solicitor responds to the modified form I have sent. But my suggestion is, if you don't like the consent form they have sent you, or what you are being asked to consent to, change it, to what you consider reasonable and appropriate for the purpose of the case. Ultimately, you have the right to withhold any consent, but that probably renders it impossible to pursue your case.
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Here is the access to medical reports act:
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/28
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