Electronic Prescription Service (EPS) in Isle of Man
Summary
The Electronic Prescription Service (EPS) securely transfers prescription information between prescribing and dispensing systems in the Isle of Man via the NHS Spine. Authorised users can issue, track, and dispense prescriptions, record or update pharmacy nominations. The data is held securely in the cloud in UK regions.
| Controller | NHS England (jointly with the Isle of Man Department of Health and Social Care) |
| How we use the information (processing activities) | The Electronic Prescription Service (EPS) securely transmits prescription information between prescribing systems (for example GP systems) and dispensing systems (for example pharmacy systems) in the Isle of Man. When a prescription is issued, the prescribing system sends the following information to the NHS Spine:
The pharmacy who prepares the medicine / appliance order, downloads the electronic prescription data from the NHS Spine, which includes the patient’s NHS number, name, date of birth, address and details of the medication / appliance that has been prescribed. Pharmacy staff have a professional and legal duty to keep patient information confidential. In order to connect to the NHS Spine users of prescribing and dispensing systems need the appropriate NHS Smartcard permissions. Authorised staff at prescribing and dispensing sites, can also check the status and location of a prescription using the EPS Prescription Tracker. The patient’s choice of nominated pharmacy is recorded in the Personal Demographic Service (PDS). At the request of a patient, prescribing and dispensing system users can add, update and remove their nominated pharmacy. For more information on how we process personal data to provide the Electronic Prescription Service to NHS organisations and services in England and Wales, see the Electronic Prescription Service in England Transparency Notice and the Electronic Prescription Service for Wales Transparency Notice. |
| Does this contain sensitive (special category) data such as health information? | Yes |
| Who are recipients of this data? |
NHS England share EPS data (electronic claims messages) with the NHS Business Services Authority (BSA) so that NHSBSA can reimburse the dispenser. The NHSBSA is the Isle of Man Department of Health and Social Care’s data processor for this activity. |
| Is data transferred outside the UK? | The EPS is part of the NHS Spine which stores data on secure cloud storage in UK regions. The Isle of Man is a self-governing dependency of the British Crown and is not a part of the UK. Therefore to provide the EPS to the Isle of Man, electronic prescriptions data relating to patients in the Isle of Man will flow between the Isle of Man and the UK. Under data protection law, this is known as an ‘international transfer’ of personal data. This transfer can take place because the UK has been granted an adequacy decision by the European Commission. The Isle of Man is also covered by UK adequacy regulations made by the UK government. This means that both the UK and the Isle of Man have been assessed to provide an adequate levels of data protection. |
| How long the data is kept | 12 months maximum after prescriptions dispensed or after prescription prescribed but not dispensed in our live system, then archived for 6 years before secure deletion. |
| Our lawful basis for holding this data | Legal obligation |
| Your rights |
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| How can you withdraw your consent? |
Consent is not the basis for processing. |
| Is the data subject to decisions made solely by computers? (automated decision making) | No |
| Where does this data come from? | Prescribing systems and dispensing systems in the Isle of Man. |
| The legal basis for collecting this data | UK GDPR: DPA 2018: |
