Medication-list anonymisation is the removal of patient IDs from a current drug sheet. It meets UK GDPR Art. 9 and DPA 2018. anonym.plus does this locally. The medicines stay readable; the file no longer names the person.
When this applies
A current sheet ties many medicines to one named individual. For a study set or a class handout, you strip the IDs but keep the medicines and doses intact.
How anonym.plus handles it
- Open the file in anonym.plus on your device.
- It scans for the name, dates, NHS number, and contacts.
- Local OCR reads scanned sheets, so printed text is caught.
- Confirm the flags; the medicine names are not IDs and stay.
- Swap each ID for a label, or black it out.
- Save the clean copy; the source stays on your machine.
What you need to provide
- The file (PDF, DOCX, TXT, or EPR export).
- An operator (Replace keeps it readable).
- Optional name map to re-link later if needed.
Patient data entity types detected
| Category | anonym.plus entity type | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Names | PERSON | Fatima Al-Hassan → [PATIENT] |
| Dates | DATE_TIME | updated 06/04 → [DATE] |
| Record IDs | MEDICAL_RECORD_NUMBER | MRN 884213 → [MRN] |
| Contact | PHONE_NUMBER | +44 170 555 0147 → [PHONE] |
| Location | LOCATION | 5 Linton Road → [ADDRESS] |
| Identifiers | NHS_NUMBER | 485 777 3456 → [NHS_NUMBER] |
Compliance achieved
- Strips identifiers under UK GDPR Art. 9 & DPA 2018.
- Anonymisation assessed per the ICO Anonymisation Code.
- Keeps the medicines, which are not patient identifiers.
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Limitations & cautions
UK GDPR Recital 26 requires that re-identification is not reasonably likely. The tool removes direct IDs; the medicines stay. A rare mix of drugs for a known person can still hint at identity, so assess residual risk for unusual cases.
Frequently asked questions
Are the medicines removed?
No. Drug names are clinical content, not personal identifiers, so they stay. Only the person's IDs go, which keeps the file useful for study.
Does this require a processor agreement?
No. The tool runs on your own device with no cloud step, so no outside party touches the data and no processor contract is needed.
Will it still read well after the swap?
Yes. Replace puts a steady label in place of each ID, so the text flows and names no one.