Synexus Privacy Policy

Synexus Clinical Research Topco Limited ("Synexus") is a commercial clinical trials recruitment company which works outside of the NHS. This privacy policy sets out how Synexus Clinical Research Topco Limited and its subsidiary companies use and protect information that you give us when you use this website.

Synexus is committed to ensuring that your privacy is protected. We will not disclose any of your details without your permission. Should we ask you to provide certain information by which you can be identified, then you can be assured it will only be used in accordance with this privacy statement.

Synexus may change this policy from time to time by updating this page. You should check this page periodically to ensure that you are happy with any changes. This policy is effective from 22nd August 2011.

What information we collect

You can access all of the pages on this Synexus therapy specific website without giving us any personal information. However, should you choose to "register your interest" with us, your personal information will then be stored on our central database.

The information we collect through the registration form may include information relating to your gender, name, date of birth, marital status, race/ethnic origin, address, contact information (including email address), national insurance number, NHS number, your physical or mental health history, lifestyle information, healthcare provider, number of dependants, family history, medications that you are currently on (prescribed and over the counter) and interests.

By completing and submitting personal data via the registration form, you are consenting for your information to be processed and stored in a central location by the Synexus group of companies, to be managed as set out in this Privacy Policy.

What we do with the information we gather

If you wish to participate in a clinical trial the information provided when registering will be expanded upon to ensure we are able to give you the best possible care available. Synexus uses the information gathered to inform you about upcoming clinical trials that may be suitable or of interest to you, to assess trends in therapy areas around the demographic areas of our clinical research sites, and to periodically send promotional communications about upcoming clinical trials or other health related information. We may also use the information to customise our websites according to user interests.

Your personal contact details may be used by us or our third party Contact Centre to contact you by phone, email or text about particular clinical trials. We may also use your information to post or email newsletters or materials that we believe may be of interest to you, or to respond to any queries or complaints that you may have.

Occasionally Synexus is approached by third parties such as academic institutions, patient support groups, and/or NHS providers, for information so they may contact you direct about services that may be of benefit to you. No such information would ever be provided to a third party not involved in the implementation of the Synexus services without your prior permission. This consent would be requested in writing by us in advance and the information only released after we received your completed and signed release form, detailing who the information was going to and for what purpose.

How is your information transferred from the site?

When you update a "general medical questionnaire" and press the submit button, your information is emailed to a controlled holding address managed by Synexus. The information you provide is then inputted into our secure Synexus database. These storage points are managed in accordance with the data Protection Act 1998. Synexus can not control the protection and privacy of any information whilst being transferred from your personal computer to our secure holding address and consequently is not responsible for the transfer process.

Synexus will hold your information on it's database for a maximum of 7 years unless you participate in a clinical trial, update your consent for us to hold your personal data, or you ask for us to remove your details from our active database.

Who can access my information?

Synexus employees may only have access to the sensitive personal data you supply, such as your medical history, where it is relevant for them to do so. However, this information will usually remain anonymised using a unique identifier within the database. Names and contact details will be used by staff members who need to supply you with information or run reporting on demographics.

Third parties such as our contracted Contact Centre will only access your information if you speak to them direct and give them permission to do so or if they contact you for the purpose of providing you with information that may be of interest to you.

No other third parties will be given access to any of your medical information and will only have access to contact information where it is necessary in accordance with this policy.

Security

We are committed to ensuring that your information is secure. In order to prevent unauthorised access or disclosure, we have put in place suitable physical, electronic and managerial procedures to safeguard and secure the information we collect online.

How we use cookies

A cookie is a small file which asks permission to be placed on your computer's hard drive. Once agreed, the file is added and the cookie helps analyse web traffic or lets you know when you visit a particular site. Cookies allow web applications to respond to you as an individual. The web application can tailor its operations to your needs, likes and dislikes by gathering and remembering information about your preferences.

Synexus may use traffic log cookies to identify which pages are being used. This helps us analyse data about web page traffic and improve our website in order to tailor it to customer needs. We only use this information for statistical analysis purposes and then the data is removed from the system.

Overall, cookies help us provide a better website, by enabling us to monitor which pages users find useful and which they do not. A cookie in no way gives us access to your computer or any information about you, other than the data you choose to share with us.

You can choose to accept or decline cookies. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies if you prefer. This may prevent you from taking full advantage of the website and some of the features on the site. For more information about cookies visit: www.allaboutcookies.org.

Links to other websites

Our website may contain links to other websites of interest. However, once you have used these links to leave our site, you should note that we do not have any control over that other website. Therefore, we cannot be responsible for the protection and privacy of any information which you provide whilst visiting such sites and such sites are not governed by this privacy statement. You should exercise caution and look at the privacy statement applicable to the website in question.

Controlling your personal information

You may choose to restrict the collection or use of your personal information in the following ways:

• if you do not tick the box confirming your agreement to these privacy policy terms, then Synexus will not hold your personal information and you will not be given the option of registering your interest.
• you can restrict the methods in which we contact you by ticking only those methods via which you are happy to be contacted by Synexus or its contracted third parties (eg our call centre).
• if you have previously agreed to Synexus using your personal information you may change your mind at any time by writing to Synexus or emailing us at patientoutreach@synexus.com.

We will not sell, distribute or lease your personal information to third parties unless we have your permission, or are required by law, to do so. With your consent we may use your personal information to send you promotional information about Synexus or third parties which we think you may find of interest.

You may request details of personal information which we hold about you under the Data Protection Act 1998. A small fee will be payable. If you would like a copy of the information held please write to Synexus Data Protection Officer, Synexus Limited, Sandringham House, Ackhurst Business Park, Chorley, PR7 1NY, United Kingdom. Alternatively, you can email us at patientoutreach@synexus.com for a Subject Access Request Form which may assist us in processing your request quicker

If you believe that any information we are holding on you is incorrect or incomplete, please write to or email us as soon as possible, at the above address. We will promptly correct any information found to be inaccurate. You may also submit an enquiry using patientoutreach@synexus.com.

For further information about your rights under the Data Protection Act visit the Information Commissioners Office at www.ico.gov.uk.

If you wish to make a complaint, please contact the Data Protection Officer at the address provided above with details of your complaint.