The Application

Your healthcare provider is offering you the MyPathway service, provided by VitalHub UK Ltd (a wholly-owned subsidiary of VitalHub Corp), to allow you to monitor your condition, provide you with care and monitor the care we provide to you.

What information does the app use?

A secure link will be established between VitalHub UK Ltd and your healthcare provider's computer systems to transfer name and contact details, date of birth, NHS number, details of your referrer, and details of your hospital/clinic appointments.

The app securely links to VitalHub UK Ltd computer systems. The app also asks you for your email address and/or mobile phone number as part of the sign-up process - this is so it can create your personal account, confirm that it is you creating the account, link it to your records at your healthcare provider, and can tell you (by email or text) of changes to your treatment pathway.

The data used by the app has been reviewed by your healthcare provider's Information Governance department to ensure that it is adequate, relevant, and limited to what is necessary.

Once you have created your account, the app shows you information about your treatment pathway, based on information in your healthcare provider's computer systems, including information about your referral. Your healthcare provider may also use the app to ask you to complete questionnaires about your health where relevant to your care, about the treatment you receive, whether the treatment has improved your health, and your overall experience of their care.

NHS login

Please note that if you access our service using your NHS login details, the identity verification services are managed by NHS England. NHS England is the controller for any personal information you provided to NHS England to get an NHS login account and verify your identity, and uses that personal information solely for that single purpose. For this personal information, our role is a “processor” only and we must act under the instructions provided by NHS England (as the “controller”) when verifying your identity. To see NHS login’s Privacy Notice and Terms and Conditions, please click here. This restriction does not apply to the personal information you provide to us separately.

Further technical information collected

The app also collects technical information about:

• the type of computer/tablet/smartphone you are using,
• the browser or app version you are using, and
• how you use the app.

All of this technical information is stored anonymously - none of it can later be tracked back to you - and is used only to improve the app. Because of the way that the internet works, the app also collects your mobile device unique ID and/or the IP address of your computer. This information will be used only to solve technical problems and is deleted after a few days.

Who is the information shared with?

The information you enter into the app is shared only with those responsible for your care. The computer system administrators also have access to enable them to fix technical difficulties; all such accesses are logged and reviewed. The technical information about your use of the app is shared anonymously with the app development team so that they can improve the app.

Information security

The MyPathway servers communicate with your browser, or the MyPathway app installed on your smartphone or tablet over the internet using a secure, encrypted (https) connection - the same security technology as when you browse a secure website.

If you are using a browser to use MyPathway, no information is stored on the computer after you log out and close the browser.

If you are using the MyPathway app installed on your device (smartphone or tablet), your information is encrypted and stored on your device so that you have access to it even without an internet connection.

You are strongly recommended to set a screen lock on your device to prevent someone else viewing your information; as long as you do this, your data is protected by the hardware security functions within your device.

Your healthcare provider and VitalHub UK Ltd cannot be held responsible for someone else viewing your information if the device you are using is unsecure.

MyPathway has been developed, and is maintained, by VitalHub UK Ltd, a company that is accredited to process NHS patient information securely. MyPathway uses a small number of carefully selected system providers:

• MyPathway stores information on computer servers located at an NHS-accredited data centre in England operated by Amazon Web Services UK Ltd.
• MyPathway uses a MailJet SAS, a French company, to securely and reliably deliver email notifications to users via API calls over HTTPS connections over internet.
• MyPathway uses Funasset Ltd, Xerox UK Ltd and CFH Docmail Ltd, all UK companies, to securely and reliably deliver postal communications to users via API calls over HTTPS connections over internet.
• MyPathway uses MessageBird B.V., a Dutch company, to securely and reliably deliver SMS notifications via API calls over HTTPS connections over internet.
• MyPathway uses Google Firebase for service improvement, URL shortening, app integrity checks and push notifications via API calls over HTTPS connections over internet.
• MyPathway uses Google reCaptcha on some forms to verify that the user is a human being.

Cookies

The app website uses cookies. We place a small data file, called a cookie, on your device via your browser. A cookie is a small text file saved on your computer or mobile device when you visit a website.

The app only uses strictly necessary cookies. These cookies are session cookies, which are used to keep you logged in to the MyPathway servers whilst you are using the app. They disappear from your computer or browser when you log out of the app or close your browser.

Data retention

In line with standard NHS policies, your information will be retained within the MyPathway system for 8 years after your last use of MyPathway.

The data retained is your name and contact details, date of birth, NHS number, details of your referrer, details of your hospital/clinic appointments, and any answers to questionnaires or other information that you have submitted to your healthcare provider via MyPathway about your health and/or your treatment.

Your rights

You are entitled to a copy of all information about you held within the app, and to have any incorrect information corrected.

If, having registered to use the app, you later decide that you no longer wish to use it, you are also entitled to have your account removed. This will not affect your health record stored in your healthcare provider's main computer systems, or the treatment that you are offered.

For either of the above, please first contact your healthcare provider. You can find their contact details included in the footer of all email messages you receive from MyPathway, or by referring to the Organisations tab of your user profile within the app.

If you wish to opt out of digital communications (email & SMS), the opt-out link is included in the footer of all email messages you receive from MyPathway. You can also control this opt-out setting through your user profile within the app.

Your consent

By accepting the invitation and signing in to the MyPathway app, you are consenting to the use of your data as described above.

Your right to lodge a complaint

If you feel that we have not dealt with your requests properly, or you have other concerns about the way in which your personal information is being used by MyPathway, you can contact the ICO:

  Information Commissioner’s Office
  Wycliffe House
  Water Lane
  Wilmslow
  Cheshire
  SK9 5AF

Tel: 0303 123 1113
Email: casework@ico.org.uk
Website: https://ico.org.uk