The Philippine Psychiatric Association, Inc. (PPA), through its Committee on Advocacy, Legislation and Multimedia (CALM), submits this position paper in response to the National Privacy Commission’s (NPC) Call for Public Input. The PPA speaks on behalf of Filipino psychiatrists and the patients who trust them with their most personal disclosures.
Psychiatric records (comprehensive clinical document which includes identifying information, intake evaluations, mental status examinations, progress notes, treatment plans, medication charts, psychological assessments, risk evaluations, correspondence, collateral information from third parties or patient informants, consent forms, and discharge summaries, combining structured charts with narrative notes that chronicle the patient’s course of treatment and serve as documentation of care provided) are NOT ordinary medical records. They hold the inner world of a person — his/her fears, trauma, relationships, and private thoughts shared in the course of treatment. These records must protect the patients, the physicians, the hospital or institution involved, and the therapeutic relationship that makes psychiatric care possible.
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