the HREC should be retained by the activity untildisposition is completed. The HREC will then beforwarded to the cognizant office of medical affairs orto the activity designated by the Commandant of theMarine Corps (CMC) for Marine Corps members. Ininstances where the parent activity retains the HREC, asummary of the hospitalization will be entered on anSF 600 when the member returns to duty.When a member is hospitalized at a medicalfacility of a foreign nation, an entry of this fact shouldbe made in the HREC. The HREC should be retainedon board and continued until the patient either returnsto duty or is transferred to another U.S. Navy vessel orU.S. military activity. Upon departure of the vesselfrom the port, the HREC should be delivered to thecommanding officer for inclusion in the member’sservice record for forwarding to the nearest U.S.embassy or consulate.SECURITY AND SAFEKEEPING OFMEDICAL RECORDSLEARNING OBJECTIVE:Recallsecurity and safekeeping procedures formedical records.Each MTF or medical department developspolicies to ensure that medical records are secure and apatient’s privacy is protected. Security andsafekeeping are major concerns and responsibilities ofstaff handling medical records. The medical recordcontains information that is personal to patients,treated as privileged information, and protected by thePrivacy Act of 1974. The Privacy Act of 1974 protectsa patient’s right to privacy in respect to personalmedical information. The Privacy Act permits only thepatients and their legal representatives to obtain thisinformation.Medical facilities or departments should takeprecautions to avoid compromise of medicalinformation during the movement and storage ofmedical records. Medical records should be handledby only authorized medical service personnel.Records should be stored in a locked area, room, or fileto ensure safekeeping, unless there is a 24-hour watchin the records room. Refer to the MANMED for moredetailed guidelines on medical record security andsafekeeping.RELEASING MEDICAL INFORMATIONLEARNING OBJECTIVE:Recognizeg u i d e l i n e s f o r re l e a s i n g m e d i c a linformation.The Surgeon General (also titled Director, NavalMedicine) is the official responsible for administeringand supervising the execution of SECNAVINST5211.5, Department of the Navy Privacy Act Program(PAP), as it pertains to the Health Care TreatmentRecord System. Additionally, the Office of theSurgeon General authorizes requests for access andamendment to naval members’ medical and dentalrecords.Commanding officers of Navy MTFs aredesignated as local systems managers for medicalrecords maintained and serviced within their activities.Local systems managers are authorized to releaseinformation from health records located within thecommand if proper credentials have been established.The requesting office or individual will be advised thatsuch information is private and must be treated withconfidentiality. In all cases where information isdisclosed, an entry must be made on OPNAV Form5211/9, Record of Disclosure-Privacy Act of 1974, andshould include the date, nature and purpose of thedisclosure, and the name and address of the person oragency receiving the information. Maintain a copy ofany such disclosure requests.GUIDELINES FOR RELEASING MEDICALINFORMATIONIn the following paragraphs, we cover the policyfor release of record transcripts. As will be noted, theappropriate rule for release to be implemented dependsupon the intended recipient of the record transcript.1. Release to the Public. Information containedin medical records of individuals who have undergonemedical or dental examination or treatment is personalto the individual and considered private and privilegedin nature. Consequently, disclosure of such informationto the public would constitute an unwarranted invasionof personal privacy. Such information is exempt fromrelease under the Freedom of Information Act.However, MTF commanding officers may releasesome information to the public or the press without thepatient’s or patient’s next of kin’s (NOK) consent. This12-4
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