You can choose if your data is used for research
Your health records contain a type of data called confidential patient information. This data can be used to help with research and planning.
You can choose to stop your confidential patient information being used for research and planning. You can also make a choice for someone else like your children under the age of 13.
Your choice will only apply to the health and care system in England. This does not apply to health or care services accessed in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.
How to make your choice
You can find all of the information about how to make your choice on the NHS England website.
Safe use of data for research
In February 2021, Professor Ben Goldacre from the University of Oxford was commissioned by the Government to review how to improve safety and security in the use of health data for research and analysis.
The report from this review, "Better, Broader, Safer: Using Health Data for Research and Analysis", made 185 recommendations aimed at benefitting patients and the healthcare sector. These recommendations included creating better platforms for the safe and secure analysis of NHS data for research.
Data Saves Lives
This strategy was published in 2022 and explains how the Government plans to use data to bring benefits to all parts of health and social care – from patients and care users to staff on the frontline and pioneers driving cutting-edge research.
One of the commitments made in this strategy was the establishment of Secure Data Environments to support life saving research.