Final answer:
A hospital must retain a patient's records for up to 25 years after discharge, or 18 years for children. The subject is Health at a College level, addressing medical record retention policy considerations.
Step-by-step explanation:
The subject of this question is Health. The grade level of this question is most closely aligned with College because it deals with healthcare policy and medical record retention, which are often addressed at the college level or in professional healthcare settings.
To answer the student's question directly: a hospital must retain a patient's records in an accessible manner in the hospital for up to 25 years after the patient's discharge and up to 18 years for a child. Hence, the correct answers are C) 25 and B) 18.
It's important to develop policies that consider various aspects when it comes to health records. Questions to consider include:
- How to balance treatment costs and patient quality of life without compromising privacy?
- What security measures are necessary to protect patient information?
- What guidelines should dictate the duration for which records must be retained?