Das Gesundheitswesen
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Das Gesundheitswesen · Nov 1992
[Data protection and data access (I): federal data protection law and the social welfare code with reference to carrying out occupational medicine epidemiologic studies in Germany].
The regulations applicable to research in occupational epidemiology are the federal data protection (confidentiality) law (BDSG), the social welfare code (SGB), medical professional secrecy regulations and the federal statistics law (BStatG). The SGB, medical professional secrecy, and BStatG codes take precedence over BDSG rulings. This paper discusses BDSG and SGB. ⋯ The concept of "informed consent" is discussed in detail, including the requirements for a legal form for informed consent. The legal codes of the BDSG, professional secrecy, and BStatG permit the transfer of personal data if the individuals concerned remain anonymous. This paper deals in detail with the concept of "anonymity".(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)