Patients' Rights

The surgeon's behavior was routine.

Bustling through rounds recently at a Manhattan teaching hospital, he ignored the questions of the young woman recovering from surgery, drew back the bedclothes and proceeded to explain her condition and the operation performed to correct it to his entourage of residents and interns. But there was nothing typical about the patient's angry reaction. She snatched the sheet out of the amazed doctor's hand and pulled it up to her chin. "No peeking unless you answer my question," she said. "I'm a patient, damn it, not a case." The surgeon finally complied.

Dignity. Many people leave hospitals distressed because doctors have either refused to answer their questions or did so in terms only another doctor could understand. Patients also get upset because their privacy is violated or because they cannot find out who is in charge of their cases or what is to happen next. Aware of this discontent, the American Hospital Association is attempting a remedy. This week it is sending its 7,000 member hospitals a twelve-point protocol emphasizing what should be obvious even to the most imperious doctors and administrators: people do not lose their need for dignity at a hospital admissions desk.

Described as a "patients' bill of rights," the document is an admonition rather than a binding ukase. Among its provisions:

P: The patient has the right to consideration and respect. He or a responsible relative is also entitled to complete information concerning diagnosis, treatment and prognosis in terms that can reasonably be expected to be understood. The doctor is obligated to be candid if the treatment proposed is experimental.

P: The patient must be fully informed of the risks or potential side effects of any proposed procedure. He has the right to refuse treatment to the extent permitted by law (courts have, for example, overruled objections to blood transfusions in some instances). He must also be warned of the medical consequences of his decision.

P: Personal privacy should be respected as completely as possible, and a person's medical records should be kept confidential. He is also entitled to know of the relationship between his hospital and any other institutions or individuals involved in his care--as when transfer to another hospital or a particular nursing home is recommended.

P: Finally, the patient has a right to examine and receive an explanation of his bill regardless of the source of payment. Some hospital bills are so complicated that even administrators are unable to explain them.

A.H.A. President John Alexander McMahon is urging member hospitals to distribute copies of the bill of rights to all incoming patients. Following its provisions, he hopes, will "contribute to more effective care and greater satisfaction for the patient, his physician and the hospital organization." It may also contribute to a reduction in lawsuits brought against practitioners and hospitals. Many malpractice suits result from misunderstandings between the patient and his doctor or hospital.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.