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Departmental Databases

Volume 496: debated on Wednesday 15 July 2009

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information databases his Department (a) maintains and (b) uses which do not contain personal information. (284400)

The Department maintains over 600 internal databases. Many of these are for local use and contain a limited amount of personal data. To provide an up-to-date and accurate list of all maintained databases would require analysis at disproportionate cost. The most significant are listed in the following table.

Databases managed by the Department of Health not holding personal information

Database

Information

Business Management System—(BMS) Financial

Departmental financial information

FIMS

NHS financial information

Refcosts

NHS financial information

UNIFY

NHS statistical data

VAXX

Public Health vaccines data

All databases maintained by the Department are managed in compliance with the Data Protection Act. The categories of data held, and the purposes for which they are used, are detailed in the Department’s entry in the Information Commissioner’s Data Protection Register. This can be viewed at:

www.ico.gov.uk/ESDWebPages/DoSearch.asp?reg=4295533

The following databases contain personal information. Where the title of the database does not on its own explain its content, a brief note of explanation has been added.

Databases managed by the Department of Health holding personal information

Database

Information

Abortion Notifications

Forms required by the Abortion Act 1967

Agenda for Change Prison Service Database

Job evaluation data

Briefing material (LINUS)

The Department’s policy lines

Business Management System (BMS)—HR

The Department’s Human Resources data

Business Management System (BMS)—Procurement

The Department’s procurement data

Certificate of Free Sales

Medical technology company name and address details

Clinical Excellence Database

Medical consultants employed by the NHS in England and Wales, and NHS employers

Contact

Correspondence management system including ministerial correspondence, parliamentary questions, and freedom of information requests

Distribution of Business

Departmental Business Pages

Dignity Champion Database

Dignity in Care

Directors of Estates and Facilities

Directory (Internal)

The Department’s staff lists

Electronic Staff Record

NHS employees

External Directory

Details of external contact

Extra Care Housing Fund

Bid and award information for Extra Care Housing Scheme grants

Healthy Start Issuing Unit Database

Individuals who may receive financial assistance

Healthy Start Reimbursement Unit

Retailer register for the Healthy Start Scheme

Honours Material

Personal and staffing information

MEDBEN

Medical benefits overseas health claims

Mental Health Service Users Personal Data

Individual casework data under mental health legislation

Modernising Medical Careers

Contacts from Doctors applying for speciality training posts in the NHS

National Child Measurement Programme

Primary school children weight assessment data

National Research Register

Research projects funded by or of interest to the NHS (archived from July 2009)

National Stakeholder Forum Membership and Contacts

Nursery Milk Redemption Unit

Day care provider details

Occupational Health Smart Card System

Pre-employment checks of doctors

Payroll

The Department’s staff payroll

Personal Medical Services (PMS) Pilots Central Return

POPPI and PANSI Registered Users Database

POPPI (Projecting Older People Population Information), PANSI (Projecting Adult Needs and Servicing Information)

Prison Probation Ombudsman (PPO) Death in Custody Reports

Private Contact Data for Mental Health Stakeholders

PROTOBS

Private Office and Top of the Office Business System

Injury Cost Recovery (ICR) Schemes

Recovery of insurance payments in respect of treatment to accident victims provided by the NHS

Security Vetting Database

Staff clearance details

SHA Very Senior Managers (VSM) Salaries and Performance Markings

Data about managers in the NHS and arm’s length bodies