Recommendation 22

HM Government · verbatim extract Accepted in Part

ACCEPT IN PRINCIPLE The Government recognises the importance of ensuring that clinicians can take account of the impact of adoption where relevant. NHS England will explore how patients who wish to do so can have their experience of forced adoption appropriately recorded in their health record, so that clinicians can take this into account in relation to care, family history, and wider support needs. This includes improving how clinicians respond where family medical history is unknown, including through clearer guidance on screening referrals and the use of genetic services where appropriate. This work will be taken forward with appropriate safeguards, including patient consent and data protection considerations. NHS England and the Department for Health and Social Care will work together to share information with clinicians and support improved understanding of adoption-related needs, reinforced through targeted education and training resources. This will help ensure clinicians take account of a patient’s experience of forced adoption, particularly where individuals do not have access to family health history, including when making decisions about screening, referrals, and access to genetic and genomic testing. This will be reflected, for example, in guidance and processes for ordering genomic tests.