Using NHS and shared systems safely

Shared NHS and clinical systems support patient care but are tightly controlled. Staff may only use them if authorised, trained, and accessing information for the person's care or another legitimate work purpose.

Role-based access matters

Community Pharmacy England's Summary Care Record guidance states that, once the pharmacy is live, SCR access is limited to pharmacists and pharmacy technicians and only when the required safeguards are in place. Access must match the user's role, the purpose for access, and the circumstances of the request.

• Do not share Smartcards, passwords, or logins: each access must be traceable to the authorised user.
• Do not use another person's access because they are busy: convenience is not a lawful reason.
• Do not access records "just in case": there must be a legitimate relationship or current care reason for access.
• Log out or lock the screen: especially when leaving the workstation in a public or shared area.

England-facing examples and local variation

Access is auditable

Shared-system access is recorded. Community Pharmacy England notes that SCR access is fully auditable, linked to the Smartcard in use, and subject to privacy alerts and local governance review. Staff should assume every access may later need to be justified.