Patient Rights

As an adult patient, you have the right to:
• Care that is considerate and respectful of your values, beliefs, and cultural practices;
• Be treated with respect and dignity;
• Be informed about and participate in decisions regarding your care;
• Participate in ethical questions that arise in the course of care, including conflict resolution,
  withholding resuscitation services, forgoing or withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment, and
  participation in investigational studies;
• Security, personal privacy, and confidentiality of information;
• Designate a decision maker in case you are incapable of understanding a treatment or procedure, or are
  unable to communicate;
• Know what facility rules and regulations apply to your conduct as a patient;

• Be free from restraints and seclusion of any form used as a means of coercion, discipline, convenience or        
  retaliation by staff;
• Expect emergency procedures to be implemented without unnecessary delay;
• Appropriate assessment and management of pain;
• Be given the names, upon request, of the attending physician, and the names and functions of other persons
  having direct contact during your care;
• Safe, good quality and high professional standards that are continually maintained and reviewed;
• Full information in layman’s terms, concerning diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, and outcomes;
• Informed consent (general nature, risks, and alternatives) prior to the start of any procedure or treatment;
• Refuse any drug, treatment, or procedure;
• Assist in obtaining consultation with another physician at your request and expense;
• Medical and nursing services without discrimination based upon race, color, religion, sex, sexual preference, 
  national origin, or source of payment;
• Access to an interpreter, when possible, if you do not speak English;
• Access, upon request, to all information in your medical records;
• Examine your bill and receive an explanation of the items on the bill if requested;
• Leave the hospital, even against your doctor’s advice;
• Expect reasonable continuity of care after discharge;
• A safe hospital environment; and
• Speak to your doctor, nurse, or to contact the Nurse Manager or Patient Liaison.
 

Pediatric patients have the following additional rights:
• To be respected as a unique individual;
• To have the normal physical, physiological, and social needs of a growing child met;
• To be allowed play, educational and social activities needed by all children;
• To be given information in an easy to understand way about what to expect before, during, and following a
  treatment or procedure;
• To be given compassionate support in dealing with a treatment or procedure; and
• To allow the child and the family to participate in decisions affecting the child’s medical treatment.