Brendan Griffin (Kerry South, Fine Gael)
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508. To ask the Minister for Health when a person changes doctor who has the responsibility of seeking their medical records; and the recourse available to them if they are having difficulty in obtaining these records; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33124/13]

Alex White (Dublin South, Labour)
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Under the General Medical Services (GMS) General Practitioner (GP) Capitation Contract, when a patient transfers from one GP's list to another, Clause 22 states that "the former medical practitioner shall, subject to the written consent of the person (or in the case of a child, his parent) give to the second medical practitioner a summary of the medical history and condition of the patient." If a patient's files have not yet been received by their new GP and they are having difficulty in obtaining these records, they should contact their HSE Local Health Office.

Under the Data Protection Acts, where an individual is a private patient of a GP, the GP is the Data Controller in respect of his/her medical records and not the HSE. The private patient has a right, under Section 4 of the Data Protection Acts, to access their data, but does not have a right to obtain the actual file. If a private patient wishes to transfer to another GP, they could request a copy of their medical records to be sent to their new GP. However, the former GP is entitled to retain custody of the file for medico-legal and other professional requirements.