Privacy notice - BPSU

Who are we?

We are the British Paediatric Surveillance Unit (BPSU), based at the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH), 5-11 Theobalds Road, London WC1X 8SH (telephone: +44 (0)20 7092 6000).

The BPSU was formed in 1986 to faciltate the epidemiological surveillance of rare paediatric conditions and events across the UK and Ireland. It has three partners, the RCPCH, University College London Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health and Public Health England. They are known as the data controllers and are the organisations responsible for ensuring your data is properly managed. The BPSU also receives support from the Royal College of Physicians Ireland. Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity also contributes financially to the activity.

For further information on the BPSU you can contact the BPSU by email: bpsu@rcpch.ac.uk

The BPSU information governance is overseen by RCPCH Data Protection Officer is contactable via emailing: information.governance@rcpch.ac.uk

What information do we collect from you?

For those clinicians contributing to the BPSU ‘report system’, the following details are held: name; hospital address; trust / NHS email and an alternative email; paediatric specialty; monthly response rates; and case conditions reported. 

Through the ‘electronic report card’, BPSU collect a monthly report from ‘reporting clinicians’ as to whether or not they have seen a case for a condition that we are carrying out surveillance for; comments from ’reporting clinicians’ to be used to update their contact details, eg retirement or change of email or of work address. 

All information is supplied by the clinician.  New clinicians to be included on the system are identified via the Certification of Completion of Training lists and via Advisory Appointments Committee as supplied by the RCPCH training and governance divisions, or through 'signing up' to receive the 'report card'. We will initially contact all new clinicians on the 'reporting system' as it is in the public interest to inform them about the BPSU 'reporting card' which enables us to collect information on a number of rare or uncommon disorders. Reporting clinicians can opt out of receiving the 'reporting card' at any time.

Why do we collect this information?

Though compliance with the BPSU rare disease 'reporting system' is voluntary, we strive for full participation as there is a clear public interest in undertaking this work. By contributing to the reporting system, you are agreeing for the information that we collect to be used for the following purposes:

• To facilitate and support the national disease screening programmes
• To facilitate and support national monitoring of statutory reportable paediatric disease
• To facilitate monitor the impact of public and child health programmes e.g. vaccine introduction
• Monitoring your compliance to the BPSU ‘reporting system’
• Monitor regional compliance rates
• Monitor regional case reports to allow for identification of possible case under ascertainment
• To send re-validation certificate to those who contribute
• Where you have returned a 'reporting card to us, we will continue to inform you of BPSU activities and events via receipt of e-newsletter as it is in our legitimate interest to do so. You can opt out of this at anytime by letting us know if you no longer want to receive it by emailing: bpsu@rcpch.ac.uk

Who might we share your information with?

• Notification of ‘case reports’ are sent to the respective ‘research team’ so they can communicate with you and collect further data on the ‘case report’. The information passed to the ‘research team’ is name; hospital address; and trust/NHS email or alternative email. Please note all BPSU facilitated studies have the appropriate ethics and governance requirements, further information on these approvals can be found on the respective study web pages. Confirmation of a case is then conveyed back to the BPSU from the ‘research teams’. The BPSU holds no clinical details whatsoever on the case.
• Collated ‘regional response rates’ and ‘case reports’ are published in an annual report. No identifiable information is communicated in this process.
• All information is held in the strictest confidence as outlined in the BPSU’s Confidentiality Advisory Group and Public Benefits Privacy Panel approvals.

The BPSU will never publish raw data. When publishing, any data that could be used to identify you will be removed or changed and only anonymised data will presented.

What do we do with your information?

Clinical data and data about reporting clinicians will be held on a platform hosted by the Health Informatics Centre (HIC) at the University of Dundee.

Your personal data will not be transferred outside of the European Economic Area.

How can I access the information you hold about me?

Under GDPR you have certain rights in regards to the data we hold about you. You can ask us to delete your personal data (called a right to be forgotten), change any inaccuracies, restrict what we use your personal data for or ask us to stop processing your personal data. You can also request that the data we hold about you is given back to you or given to another service provider in a commonly used format. This is called data portability. You are entitled to ask for a copy of the data we hold about you as well. However, there are some restrictions which apply to these requests, such as if we have an overriding legal obligation to keep the data.

To find out more about your rights visit the ICO website or to make a request contact the Data Protection Officer: information.governance@rcpch.ac.uk or write to the Information Governance Manager, RCPCH, 5-11 Theobalds Road, London WC1X 8SH.

In accordance with Data Protection Legislation, we have a legal duty to protect any information we collect from you and we have measures in place to ensure your data is securely and safely stored.

You have the right to complain to the ICO if you have concerns about the way your personal data is being handled: casework@ico.org.uk.

How long do we keep hold of your information for?

We will only retain your information for as long as you consent or we will retain it for 20 years until the data is reviewed for permanent preservation for historical research purposes, in line with current MRC guidance . As soon as you opt-out of receiving the BPSU reporting card we shall suppress your details.

Contact details for further information

For further information on the BPSU you can contact the BPSU Project Manager  by telephone: +44 (0)20 709 261 76 or email: bpsu@rcpch.ac.uk.

The BPSU information governance is overseen by RCPCH Data Protection Officer is contactable via emailing: information.governance@rcpch.ac.uk.