Patients' rights and responsibilities

“I solemnly pledge myself to consecrate my life to service of humanity.” This is the first sentence a doctor utters while taking an oath when s/he enters into the medical profession. They are considered as God by people despite knowing the fact that they are human, as the profession gives ‘hope’ to live to a patient and his family. But due to the increasing number of medico legal issues in the country, there is a serious concern about the doctor-patient relationship. To raise awareness among the patients about their rights and responsibilities as patients and to build up a strong, safe and healthy doctor patient relationship, the Dr. Anamika Ray Memorial Trust observes June 25 as Patients’ Rights Day under the “STOP MEDICAL TERRORISM” movement for better and transparent healthcare services in India.
The Trust, in consultation with a panel of medical professionals of national and international repute, drafted the Patients’ Rights in 10 points and the responsibilities in another 10 points. The Rights and Responsibilities of the patients available at http://smt.armt.in in many Indian languages. It's a two page document. The Trust requests everyone to support the cause by downloading the document in their preferred language, printing it out and distributing it among patients in any hospital in India. The Trust believes that this initiative may save hundreds of lives and will be a great contribution for better and more transparent healthcare services in India.
The rights mentioned in the draft include the right to get the best possible medical care without discrimination; right to prompt, life-saving treatment; right to take part in all decisions relating to one’s health care; right to privacy; right to know the identity and role of people involved in treatment; right to dignity and to have caregivers’ respect; right to appropriate assessment and management of pain; right to receive visitors; right to refuse treatment and to leave the medical centre; and right to get necessary information related to the line of treatment as well as all health records.
The responsibilities mentioned in the draft include the responsibility to refrain from misbehaving and misconduct towards any medical service providers; responsibility to refrain from physical assault of any healthcare personnel or damage to property; responsibility to be truthful; responsibility to provide complete and accurate medical history; responsibility to cooperate with the agreed line of treatment; responsibility to meet the financial obligations; responsibility to refrain from initiating, participating or supporting fraudulent and illegal health care practices; responsibility to report illegal or unethical behaviour; responsibility to get a post-mortem done and responsibility to discuss end of life decisions.

1. 02 July 2016 © DR anamika ray memorial trust, 2015; cc-by-sa 1 Patients’ rights & responsibilities Dr. Ankuran Dutta Managing Trustee, Dr. Anamika Ray Memorial Trust

2. this presentation is dedicated to Dr Anamika Ray

3. Patients’ Rights Day 02 July 2016 © DR anamika ray memorial trust, 2015; cc-by-sa 3

4. Rights of the patients 02 July 2016 © DR anamika ray memorial trust, 2015; cc-by-sa 4 We support Your Rights as a Patient !!! 1. You have the right to get the best possible medical care without discrimination based on race, religion, disability, gender, sexual orientation, age and source of payment. 2. You have the right to prompt, life-saving treatment in an emergency without discrimination and without delay due to discussion regarding the source of payment. 3. You have the right to take part in all decisions relating to your health care and to be educated and counselled in appropriate circumstances about your healthcare needs.

5. Rights of the patients 02 July 2016 © DR anamika ray memorial trust, 2015; cc-by-sa 5 We support Your Rights as a Patient !!! 4 . You have the right to privacy except in certain situations, to know the role played by any observer and to have any observer unrelated to your care leave . 5. You have a right to know the identity and role of people involved in your care . 6. You have the right to dignity and to have caregivers respect you , your proper name, your cultural and personal values, beliefs and preferences, and your educational background . 7. You have the right to appropriate assessment and management of your pain .

6. Rights of the patients We support Your Rights as a Patient!!! 8. You have the right to receive visitors you choose including a spouse, a domestic partner, another family member or a friend while staying at the medical center . 9. You have the right to refuse treatment and to leave the medical center against doctor’s advice unless you have certain infections or cannot maintain your and others’ safety. 10. You have the right to get necessary information about your medical situation, expected treatment costs, expected outcome, redressal process & your medical record within 72 hours . 02 July 2016 © DR anamika ray memorial trust, 2015; cc-by-sa 6

7. responsibilities of the patients We urge you to perform Your Responsibilities as a Patient !!! 1. You have a responsibility to refrain from misbehaving and misconduct if you are not satisfied with your physician or his line of treatment. 2. You have a responsibility to refrain from physical assault of any healthcare personnel or damage to property of medical centre if you are unhappy with the situation. 3. You have a responsibility to be truthful and to express your concerns clearly to your doctors. 02 July 2016 © DR anamika ray memorial trust, 2015; cc-by-sa 7

8. responsibilities of the patients We urge you to perform Your Responsibilities as a Patient !!! 4. You have a responsibility to provide your complete and accurate medical history as far as possible, including details of past illnesses, family history of diseases, hospitalisations, etc. 5. You have a responsibility to cooperate with the agreed line of treatment and comply with instructions and to indicate when you would like to reconsider the treatment plan. 6. You have a responsibility to meet your financial obligations with regard to medical care or to discuss financial hardships with your doctors. 7. You have a responsibility to refrain from initiating, participating or supporting fraudulent and illegal health care practices such as sex determination of foetus and others. 02 July 2016 © DR anamika ray memorial trust, 2015; cc-by-sa 8

9. responsibilities of the patients We urge you to perform Your Responsibilities as a Patient !!! 8 . You have a responsibility to report illegal or unethical behaviour by doctors and other providers to the appropriate medical societies, licensing boards, or law enforcement authorities. 9. You have a responsibility to get a post-mortem done if there is any casualty due to medical error or negligence; otherwise it is difficult to prove the negligent act. 10. You have a responsibility to discuss end of life decisions including organ donation and life-support systems, and to make your wishes clearly known in advance. 02 July 2016 © DR anamika ray memorial trust, 2015; cc-by-sa 9

10. Stop medical terrorism 02 July 2016 © DR anamika ray memorial trust, 2015; cc-by-sa 10 Stop Medical Terrorism is a campaign for better and transparent healthcare services in India Dr . Anamika Ray Memorial Trust urges the public not to be swayed by divertive and misleading arguments and to support the movement. To support this, any supporter can type JOIN ATRUST and ‘SMS’ it to 9220092200 or give a missed call to 02262116842. Please visit: http ://smt.armt.in/ Please like https ://www.facebook.com/justice4anamikaray /