The Caldicott Principles

In this course, we will look at the Caldicott Principles. A review was commissioned in 1997 by the Chief Medical Officer of England, “owing to increasing concern about the ways in which patient information is being used in the NHS in England and Wales, and the need to ensure that confidentiality is not undermined”. As the report addresses specific concerns in the NHS, this module is of particular importance to all those in the Healthcare sector. However, with many services now jointly delivered by health and social care, all organisations in both sectors should be working to the same overarching set of principles. For this reason, most aspects of the principles covered will be of interest and relevance to all those working in a variety of public authority functions. Upon completion of this course, you should be able to: • Explain what The Caldicott Committee is and how and why it was set up • Acknowledge the Caldicott Guardians and their function • Outline the 7 Caldicott Principles • Acknowledge when Caldicott approval is or is not required