This is a short electronic summary of important medical information, automatically created from GP records, for every patient in the country.
It is an electronic health record that can be accessed when you need urgent treatment from somebody other than your own GP.
It holds details such as current medication, allergies and details of any previous adverse reactions to medication.
If you have an accident or fall ill, the people caring for you in places like accident and emergency departments and GP out of hours services will be better equipped to treat you if they have this information.
There is more information about SCR from the NHS digital website.
A short photo story about a patient experience of the benefits of SCR can be found on the NHS England website.
You are free to change your decision at any time by informing your GP practice.
For more information talk to your GP practice, or call the Health and Social Care Information Centre on 0300 303 5678.
Opting-in
If you want a record you do not need to do anything further, one will be created for you when you register with your GP practice.
Opting-out
If you decide that you do not want an SCR then you can opt-out.
If you do not want a record, you need to fill in the Summary Care Record opt out form and hand it into your GP practice.
You should do this even if you have already completed a form at your previous practice.
You can also ask reception and they can provide you with the SCR opt-out-form to fill out when you are next in the surgery.
If you opted out of having a record in the past but have now changed your mind, speak to your GP practice and they can create one for you.
Adding additional information
You can also choose to have other useful additional information included in your SCR which can further enhance the care you receive.
You can find out more by clicking this adding more information to your Summary Care Record.
If you would like to add more information to your Summary care record then you will need to complete NHS Summary Care Record with additional information form and return it to the practice.
Alternatively, if you ask at Reception, a member of staff can provide you with this form.
SCR for children
Children under 16 will automatically have a Summary Care Record created for them unless their parent or guardian chooses to opt them out.
If you are the parent or guardian of a child under 16 and feel that they are old enough to understand, please tell them about Summary Care Records and explain the options available to them