Patient Rights and Responsibilities

Patient Rights

As a patient, you have the right to respectful and considerate care. In addition, there are specific rights and responsibilities you have during your hospital stay.

You have the right to:

1. Considerate and respectful care and to be made comfortable. You have the right to respect for your cultural, psychosocial, spiritual and personal values, beliefs and preferences.
2. Have a family member (or other representative of your choosing) and your own physician notified promptly of your admission to the hospital.
3. Know the name of the licensed healthcare practitioner acting within the scope of his or her professional licensure who has primary responsibility for coordinating your care and the names and professional relationships of other physicians and non-physicians who will see you.
4. Receive information about your health status, diagnosis, prognosis, course of treatment, prospects for recovery and outcomes of care (including unanticipated outcomes) in terms you can understand. You have the right to effective communication and to participate in the development and implementation of your plan of care. You have the right to participate in ethical questions that arise in the course of your care, including issues of conflict resolution, withholding resuscitative services, and forgoing or withdrawing life-sustaining treatment.
5. Make decisions regarding medical care, and receive as much information about any proposed treatment or procedure as you may need in order to give informed consent or to refuse a course of treatment. Except in emergencies, this information shall include a description of the procedure or treatment, the medically significant risks involved, alternate courses of treatment or nontreatment and the risks involved in each, and the name of the person who will carry out the procedure or treatment.
6. Request or refuse treatment, to the extent permitted by law. However, you do not have the right to demand inappropriate or medically unnecessary treatment or services. You have the right to leave the hospital even against the advice of the medical staff, to the extent permitted by law.
7. Be advised if the hospital/licensed practitioner acting within the scope of his or her professional licensure proposes to engage in or perform human experimentation affecting your care or treatment. You have the right to refuse to participate in such research projects.
8. Reasonable responses to any reasonable requests made for service.
9. Appropriate assessment and management of your pain, information about pain, pain relief measures and to participate in pain management decisions. You may request or reject the use of any or all modalities to relieve pain, including opiate medication, if you suffer from severe chronic intractable pain. The doctor may refuse to prescribe the opiate medication, but if so, must inform you that there are physicians who specialize in the treatment of severe chronic pain with methods that include the use of opiates.
10. Formulate advance directives. This includes designating a decision maker if you become incapable of understanding a proposed treatment or become unable to communicate your wishes regarding care. Hospital staff and practitioners who provide care in the hospital shall comply with these directives. All patients' rights apply to the person who has legal responsibility to make decisions regarding medical care on your behalf.
11. Have personal privacy respected. Case discussion, consultation, examination and treatment are confidential and should be conducted discreetly. You have the right to be told the reason for the presence of any individual. You have the right to have visitors leave prior to an examination and when treatment issues are being discussed. Privacy curtains will be used in semi-private rooms.
12. Confidential treatment of all communications and records pertaining to your care and stay in the hospital. You will receive a separate "Notice of Privacy Practices" that explains your privacy rights in detail and how we may use and disclose your protected health information.
13. Receive care in a safe setting, free from mental, physical, sexual or verbal abuse and neglect, exploitation or harassment. You have the right to access protective and advocacy services including notifying government agencies of neglect or abuse.
14. Be free from restraints and seclusion of any form used as a means of coercion, discipline, convenience or retaliation by staff.
15. Reasonable continuity of care and to know in advance the time and location of appointments as well as the identity of the persons providing the care.
16. Be informed by the physician, or a delegate of the physician, of continuing health care requirements and options following discharge from the hospital. You have the right to be involved in the development and implementation of your discharge plan. Upon your request, a friend or family member may be provided with this information also.
17. Know which hospital rules and policies apply to your conduct while a patient.
18. Designate visitors of your choosing, if you have decision-making capacity, whether or not the visitor is related by blood or marriage, unless:
    • No visitors are allowed.
    • The facility reasonably determines that the presence of a particular visitor would endanger the health or safety of a patient, a member of the health facility staff or another visitor to the health facility, or would significantly disrupt the operations of the facility.
    • You have told the health facility staff that you no longer want a particular person to visit. However, a health facility may establish reasonable restrictions upon visitation, including restrictions upon the hours of visitation and number of visitors. The health facility must inform you (or your support person, where appropriate) of your visitation rights, including any clinical restrictions or limitations. The health facility is not permitted to restrict, limit, or otherwise deny visitation privileges on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation or disability.
19. Have your wishes considered, if you lack decision-making capacity, for the purposes of determining who may visit. The method of that consideration will comply with federal law and be disclosed in the hospital policy on visitation. At a minimum, the hospital shall include any persons living in your household and any support person pursuant to federal law.
20. Examine and receive an explanation of the hospital's bill regardless of the source of payment.
21. Exercise these rights without regard to sex, race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, age, disability, medical condition, marital status, sexual orientation, educational background, economic status or the source of payment for care.
22. File a grievance. If you want to file a grievance with this hospital, you may do so by writing or by calling DAMERON HOSPITAL 525 W. Acacia St., Stockton, CA 95203, 209.944.5550. The grievance committee will review unresolved grievances and provide you with a written response within 30 days. The written response will contain the name of a person to contact at the hospital, the steps taken to investigate the grievance, the results of the grievance process and the date of completion of the grievance process. Upon request, concerns regarding quality of care or premature discharge will also be referred to the appropriate Utilization and Quality Control Peer Review Organization.
23. File a complaint with the state Department of Public Health Licensing and Certification regardless of whether you use the hospital's grievance process. The state phone number and address is: 916.263.5800; CDPH, 3901 Lennane Drive, Ste. 210, Sacramento, CA 95834. Complaints: 800.554.0354 Fax: 916.341.6840.

This Patient Rights document incorporates the requirements of The Joint Commission; Title 22, California Code of Regulations, Section 70707; Health and Safety Code Sections 1262.6, 1288.4, and 124960; and 42 C.F.R. Section 482.13 (Medicare Conditions of Participation).

Patient Responsibilities

Providing information that facilitates his or her care, treatment and services. Patients and caregivers, as appropriate, must provide, to the best of their knowledge, accurate and complete information about present complaints, past illnesses, surgeries, hospitalizations, medications or dietary supplements, and other matters relating to their health. Patients and their caregivers must report perceived risks in their care and unexpected changes in their condition. Share any healthcare goals, values or spiritual beliefs that are important to your well-being. Provide the facility a copy of your advance directive or living will, POLST or durable power of attorney.

Asking questions. Patients and caregivers, as appropriate, must ask questions when they do not understand the treatment course or care decision.

Following instructions policies, rules and regulations in place to support the quality care for patients and a safe environment for all individuals in the hospital. Patients and their caregivers should follow the care, treatment, treatment, medication, dietary and therapy service plans developed. Patients and their caregivers should express any concerns about their ability to follow the proposed care plans. Patients and their caregivers should acknowledge when they do not understand the treatment course or care decisions. The organization makes every effort to adapt the plan to the specific needs and limitations of the patients. When such adaptations to the care, treatment and service plan are not recommended, the patients and their caregivers are informed of the consequences of the care, treatment and service alternatives and not following the proposed course.

Accepting consequences. Patients and their caregivers are responsible for the outcomes if they do not follow the care, treatment and service plan.

Following rules and regulations. Patients and their caregivers must follow the hospital's rules and regulations.

Showing respect and consideration. Patients and their caregivers must support mutual consideration and respect by maintaining civil language and conduct in interactions with staff and licensed independent practitioners.

Meeting financial commitments. Patients and their caregivers should promptly meet any financial obligations agreed to with the organization. Be aware of any network or admission requirements under your health plan, and provide the facility with accurate, current health coverage information.