Your Rights

As a patient, you have the right:

To have cultural, psychosocial, spiritual and personal values, beliefs and preferences respected 

To considerate and respectful care given by competent personnel with regard to personal dignity 

To quality care and professional standards that are continually maintained and evaluated 

To have impartial access to the resources of the hospital indicated for your care without regard to race, color, creed, national origin, beliefs, values, language, functional status, disability, age, sex, sexual preference, handicap or source of payment 

To hear from your physician, in language you can reasonably be expected to understand, your diagnosis, the treatment prescribed for you, the prognosis of your illness, any alternative treatments and possible complications, and any instruction required to follow up care; also to review your medical records and to have the information explained or interpreted as necessary, except when restricted by law 

To be informed of the facility rules and regulations that apply to your conduct as a patient and to receive materials at the time of admission regarding hospital rules and regulations, patient’s rights, and complaint/grievance mechanisms 

To be given the name of the attending physician and other physicians responsible for coordinating your care and to be informed of the names of other professionals at the time of their involvement in your care 

To be informed about the general nature, risks, and alternative of any procedures or treatments prescribed for you so that you or your authorized representative can give informed consent prior to the event, except for emergencies 

To expect emergency procedures to be implemented without unnecessary delay 

To, in collaboration with your physician, make decisions involving your health care and participate in the development and implementation of your plan of care, including the right to refuse treatment, including foregoing or withdrawing life-sustaining treatment or withholding resuscitative services to the extent permitted by law and to be informed of the medical consequences of this action 

To be provided education about pain and pain management measures including pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions for pain management, a concerned staff committed to pain prevention and management, a staff that believes your reports of pain and who will respond promptly to your reports of pain, and pain management will be regularly reassessed and modified to achieve optimal pain control 

To not be awakened by hospital staff unless medically necessary and to medical and nursing treatment that avoids unnecessary physical and mental discomfort and needless duplication 

To be provided access to spiritual care in a manner consistent with your faith and religious tradition 

To assistance in obtaining consultation with another physician at your request and expense 

To expect your personal privacy to be respected, consistent with the care prescribed for you and to expect all communications and records pertaining to your care to be kept confidential 

To expect that the facility will provide a mechanism whereby you are informed upon discharge of your continuing health care requirements following discharge and the possible means for meeting them 

When medically permissible, to be transferred to another facility only after you have been given complete information and explanation concerning the needs for and alternatives and risks to such transfer 

To be given the benefit of participation in clinical training programs offered by the institution 

To be informed of any human experimentation research or donor programs the hospital may propose which would affect your care or treatment so that you or your authorized representative can give consent prior to the event 

To examine and receive an explanation of your bill, regardless of source of payment and to identify available financial information 

To participate in the consideration of ethical issues that arise in your care and to formulate advance directives 

To expect your rights and responsibilities to be extended to your authorized representative if you are unable to act on your own behalf or if you are underage, as in the case of a neonate, child, or adolescent 

To have access when possible to an interpreter 

To speak with your physician or nurse or to contact the Service Excellence Department for assistance in the resolution of any concerns or complaints you have regarding your care; grievances may be filed with the Service Excellence Department; information regarding governing state agencies is also available in the Service Excellence Department 

Upon request, to have a family member/representative of your choice and your own physician notified promptly of your admission to the hospital 

To not be denied access to an individual or agency who is authorized to act on your behalf or assert or protect your rights 

To receive care in a safe setting and be free from all forms of abuse and harassment 

To be free from restraints of any form that are not medically necessary or are used as a means for coercion, discipline, convenience, or retaliation by staff

The facility shall provide a patient or patient designee upon request, access to all information contained in the patient’s medical records as allowed by law and regulations. A patient’s access to medical records may be restricted by the patient’s attending physician. If the physician restricts the patient’s access to information in the patient’s medical record, the physician shall record the reasons in the patient’s medical record. Access shall be restricted only for sound medical reason. A patient’s designee may have access to the information in the patient’s medical records even if the physician restricts the patient’s access to those records.

HIPAA

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) provides patients rights related to the use and disclosure of their own medical information. Those rights include the right to:

• Inspect a copy your medical information (pursuant to hospital processes)
• Request an amendment of your medical information
• Obtain an accounting of disclosure
• Request a restriction on the use or disclosure of your medical information (We are not required to agree.)
• Request confidential communications
• Obtain a paper copy of our Notice of Privacy Practices

For more details on these rights and how to execute them, please ask for a copy of our Privacy Notice. You may ask your nurse or call our Privacy Office at 336-713-4472.