Patient rules define the basic rule of conduct between you as the patient and your health care provider. If your rights have been violated, you can file a lawsuit against your caregiver or the healthcare institution. According to some lawyers in South Carolina, you need a medical malpractice lawyer to help you understand the process of making a legal claim against any medical professional.
Why You Need to Know Your Rights as a Patient
It is very critical to not only know but also to exercise your rights as a patient. If you don’t know your rights, you will not know how to react when medical professionals mess up and cause you harm. Some caregivers may take advantage of the ignorance of your rights and mishandle you or your loved one.
Knowing your rights will help you to know what you expect from your healthcare providers. This article will provide you with six patient rights you need to know.
1. Communication
A transparent and honest conversation between you and your doctor is essential. Your healthcare provider should always be very open and honest with you about your condition. You also have a right to be given your medical bills, examine them, and demand an explanation about them.
You or your guardian are also entitled to information about your past and present medical state.
2. Right to Decline Treatment
For your reasons, you have a right to refuse medication or the procedure given to you by your doctor. If your religious beliefs are against what the doctor is recommending, you can boldly decline such recommendations. You can also refuse treatment if you feel the healthcare provider is not the right one to offer you treatment.
3. Right to Proper Medical Care
You have a right to appropriate health and medical care without discrimination of any kind. In receiving good medical care, your integrity, dignity, and individual needs should be respected and protected as well. If you are denied medical care for whatever reason, it would be wise if you contacted a lawyer and filed a lawsuit.
4. Right to Informed Consent
Doctors should not decide anything without involving you. Health care providers should seek your consent on the various decisions that they think should be used to cure your condition. Whatever a doctor is proposing to do–the nature of treatment and the side effects, risks, and benefits–they should seek your consent first.
In explaining to you about their decisions, some doctors may use jargon that you may not understand. It will help if you ask your doctors to simplify and clearly explain everything before you give your consent.
5. Right to Confidentiality
Your healthcare provider should assure you of privacy to your medical status and documents. It would be wrong if your caregiver revealed any of your confidential information to anyone without your consent. No one should disclose your private information to anyone or the public without your permission.
6. Right to Medical Records
If you are in the right mental state, you have a right to view a summary of your medical records. Medical records should be provided to you upon request. Your medical records should also remain private and confidential, and you can file a case against anyone who will reveal your medical records to anyone.
Know Your Rights
To exercise your rights, you need to know and understand them first. If you clearly understand your rights, then you will decrease your mistreatment chances by your medical providers. Also, you may consider filing a case against any medical professional you feel has violated your rights as a patient.