The Walk In Clinic

Call us for any question

(052) 613 3174
089 442 4301

Email

Info@thewalkinclinic.org

Privacy Policy – The Walk In Clinic Clonmel

Last updated: 19 October 2026

At The Walk In Clinic, we take the privacy of your personal and medical information seriously. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, why we collect it, how we keep it safe and the rights you have over it. It applies when you visit our clinic in Clonmel, book or attend a walk-in or phone consultation, request a prescription, register as a patient, or use our website, thewalkinclinic.org.

We process your information in line with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the Irish Data Protection Acts 1988 to 2018, and the Medical Council’s Guide to Professional Conduct and Ethics.

1. Who We Are

The Walk In Clinic is the data controller for the personal information described in this policy. This means we decide how and why your information is used, and we are responsible for protecting it.

 

 

Clinic

The Walk In Clinic

Address

Unit 33, Showgrounds Shopping Centre, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary, Ireland

Phone

(052) 613 3174 / 089 442 4301

Email

Info@thewalkinclinic.org

Website

Home

If you have any questions about this policy or how we handle your information, please contact us using the details above.

2. Information We Collect

We only collect the information we need to provide you with safe, effective medical care and to run our clinic.

Personal details

  • Name, title, date of birth and gender
  • Home address, phone number and email address
  • Next of kin name, relationship and address
  • Parent or legal guardian details, where the patient is a child or cannot consent for themselves
  • Your preferred pharmacy
  • Your PPS number, only where you consent to us holding it

Health information

Health information is a special category of personal data under GDPR, and we give it extra protection. It may include:

  • The reason for your visit and your symptoms
  • Allergies, current medications, and medical and surgical history
  • Consultation notes, examination findings, diagnoses and treatment plans
  • Prescriptions, referrals (including radiology referrals for X-ray, ultrasound, MRI and CT scans) and test results
  • Sick certificates and driving licence medical reports issued to you
  • Wound care and minor injury treatment records

Booking and payment information

  • Appointment details, including consultation type, date and time
  • Payment records for consultation fees. We do not store full card details; card payments are handled by our payment provider.

Communications

  • Messages, emails, phone calls and WhatsApp messages you send us
  • Notes from phone consultations

Website information

  • Information you enter into our booking, contact and patient registration forms
  • Technical information such as your IP address, browser type and the pages you visit, collected through cookies (see Section 9)

3. How We Collect Your Information

We collect information directly from you when you:

  • Complete our patient registration and consent form, online or in the clinic
  • Book a consultation online, by phone or through WhatsApp
  • Attend a walk-in consultation or take part in a phone consultation
  • Request a prescription, sick certificate or medical report
  • Contact us by phone, email or through our website

We may also receive information about you from other healthcare providers involved in your care, such as hospitals, radiology services, laboratories or your own GP. Where a parent or guardian registers a child, we collect the child’s information from them.

Under GDPR we must have a lawful basis for each use of your information. For health information, we also need an additional condition under Article 9 GDPR.

Why we use your information

Legal basis

To assess, diagnose and treat you, and to keep accurate medical records

Article 6(1)(b) providing a service you asked for; Article 9(2)(h) provision of health care

To issue prescriptions, referrals, sick certificates and driving licence medical reports

Article 6(1)(b); Article 9(2)(h)

To share information with other healthcare professionals involved in your care

Article 9(2)(h) provision of health care

To manage bookings, reminders and payments

Article 6(1)(b) providing a service you asked for

To send you text messages about your appointments and care

Article 6(1)(a) your consent, which you can withdraw at any time

To keep a record of your PPS number

Article 6(1)(a) and Article 9(2)(a) your explicit consent

To meet our legal, regulatory and professional obligations, including record keeping and safeguarding

Article 6(1)(c) legal obligation; Article 9(2)(h) and (g)

To protect your life or someone else’s in an emergency

Article 6(1)(d) and Article 9(2)(c) vital interests

To deal with complaints, legal claims and insurance

Article 6(1)(f) legitimate interests; Article 9(2)(f) legal claims

To run, secure and improve our website

Article 6(1)(f) legitimate interests, and your consent for non-essential cookies

We will never sell your information or use it for marketing without your consent.

5. Who We Share Your Information With

Only the clinicians caring for you and authorised clinic staff can access your records. We share your information outside the clinic only when it is needed for your care, when you agree, or when the law requires it. This may include:

  • Other healthcare providers involved in your care: hospitals, consultants, radiology and imaging services, laboratories, your own GP and out-of-hours services
  • Pharmacies: your chosen pharmacy, so they can dispense your prescriptions
  • Service providers who support the clinic: IT, practice management software, online booking, website hosting, email and secure communication providers. They act only on our instructions, under written data processing agreements.
  • Public bodies, where the law requires it: for example the HSE, Tusla (child safeguarding), An Garda Síochána, the Department of Social Protection, the Medical Council or the courts
  • Our professional advisers and insurers: for example our medical indemnity insurer, if a claim or complaint arises

We do not share your information with your employer, school or insurer without your consent. Sick certificates and medical reports are given to you to pass on.

6. Transfers Outside the EEA

We aim to store your information within the European Economic Area (EEA). If a service provider processes data outside the EEA, we make sure appropriate safeguards are in place, such as an EU adequacy decision or the European Commission’s Standard Contractual Clauses.

7. How Long We Keep Your Information

We keep medical records for as long as needed for your care and to meet our legal and professional obligations, in line with HSE and Medical Council guidance. In general:

  • Adult records: at least 8 years after your last contact with the clinic
  • Children’s records: until the patient’s 25th birthday, or 26th if they were 17 at the end of treatment, or 8 years after death
  • Booking, payment and website enquiry records: only for as long as needed for the purpose they were collected, and for accounting and tax requirements

When records are no longer needed, they are securely and permanently destroyed.

8. How We Protect Your Information

We use technical and organisational measures to keep your information safe, including:

  • Encrypted, password-protected and access-controlled electronic records
  • Paper records kept in locked, restricted areas
  • Access limited to staff who need it for their role
  • Confidentiality obligations and data protection training for all staff
  • Secure platforms for online booking and phone consultations

If a data breach is likely to put your rights at risk, we will notify the Data Protection Commission within 72 hours and inform you without undue delay, as GDPR requires.

9. Our Website and Cookies

Our website uses cookies, which are small text files stored on your device. Essential cookies keep the website working, for example our booking and registration forms. With your consent, we may also use analytics cookies to understand how visitors use the site so we can improve it.

Our website includes some third-party features, such as Google reviews, Google Maps links, our online booking system and a WhatsApp chat link. These providers may collect information under their own privacy policies.

You can accept or reject non-essential cookies through our cookie banner, and you can delete or block cookies in your browser settings at any time.

10. Phone and Online Consultations

Phone consultations and online prescription requests receive the same confidentiality and protection as in-person visits. We use secure systems, and notes from these consultations are added to your medical record. We will confirm your identity before discussing your care. Please take your call somewhere private.

If you contact us by WhatsApp, please be aware that WhatsApp is run by a third party, Meta. For sensitive medical details, we recommend phoning or visiting the clinic.

11. Your Rights

Under GDPR, you have the right to:

  • Access a copy of the personal and medical information we hold about you
  • Rectification, to have inaccurate or incomplete information corrected
  • Erasure, to ask us to delete your information. We may be legally required to keep medical records for a set period.
  • Restriction, to ask us to limit how we use your information
  • Data portability, to receive your information in a commonly used format or have it sent to another provider
  • Object to us using your information on the basis of legitimate interests
  • Withdraw consent at any time, where we rely on your consent (for example, text messages or holding your PPS number)

To use any of these rights, email us at Info@thewalkinclinic.org or ask at the clinic. We may need to confirm your identity first. We will respond within one month, and there is normally no charge.

12. Children’s Information

We treat children’s information with particular care. For patients under 16, a parent or legal guardian usually provides consent and registration details. Young people may be seen confidentially where the doctor judges this to be in their best interests, in line with Medical Council guidance.

13. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in the law or in how we work. The latest version will always be published on this page, with the date it was last updated.

14. Contact Us and Complaints

If you have any questions or concerns about how we handle your information, please contact us first so we can try to resolve them:

  • Email: Info@thewalkinclinic.org
  • Phone: (052) 613 3174 or 089 442 4301
  • Post: The Walk In Clinic, Unit 33, Showgrounds Shopping Centre, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary