Données médicales en garde à vue : quel droit d'accès pour le patient ?

According to the French law, each person who is in custody has the right to request a medical examination. Physicians must decide whether the patient's health status meets the necessary requirements to proceed in police custody. After the medical examination, the physician writes a two-part document: the medical certificate that indicates the arrestee's compatibility with police custody in the police headquarters and the confidential medical file. A medical file is created for each person examined in custody. According to the French law, all patients have access to all medical information. Professionals and health care facilities hold this information. Like any patient, the person in custody, his beneficiary upon death, and the holder of the parental authority for minors remanded in custody have the right to access medical information and files. Patients' rights are a daily concern for all health professionals. Thus, physicians and health institutions that provide medical services for arrestees in custody must know the laws that grant the rights of access to medical files.