Support migrants to access primary care

Before

• Read the Factsheets: entitlement to Primary Care and Data Sharing
• Make sure you and your practice staff know the guidance: that everyone is entitled to free primary care
• Be aware of barriers faced by vulnerable patients
• Check your registration policy: do you have a policy for those without ID or proof of address?
• Protect confidentiality and dignity of patient by using interpreters, not family members or friends

During consultation

• Provide support to those who are fearful at registration
• Never ask about immigration status or visa—they are not relevant in primary care
• Treat lack of proof of ID/address as a red flag for vulnerability
• Until recently, patient data was shared with the Home Office for immigration enforcement. Patients can use the surgery address or a friend’s if they remain fearful about the safety of their personal information.
• Use interpreters where needed
• Take a whole practice approach
• Use clinical discretion to classify treatment as ‘urgent or immediately necessary’ where appropriate
• Always ask about violence—many of the charging exemptions are linked to violence
• Always consider trafficking

After

• Refer to secondary care regardless of status (it is the hospital’s responsibility to determine eligibility to care - the fact sheet on entitlement to secondary care provides further details)
• See the Doctors of the World ‘Safe Surgeries’ Toolkit, which has guidance on how to make your surgery safe for patients in vulnerable situations

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  Doctors of the World Safe Surgeries Resources

  www.doctorsoftheworld.org.uk

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  Doctors of the World Safe Surgeries

  www.doctorsoftheworld.org.uk