Patients' Rights and Medical Personnel Duties in the Field of Hospital Care

Abstract

The aim of this chapter is to describe selected universal rights of the patient. The authors specify the seven types of patient rights: the right to appropriate organization of treatment on equal terms, the right to respect patient's dignity and privacy, the right to full and comprehensible information on the state of health, the right of access to medical documentation, the right to self-determination - to agree to provide health care services, the right to respect for private and family life and religion and the right to seek compensation and other benefits in the event of damage to the result of medical malpractice. This classification is the basis to discuss the specifics of each of them with reference to specific examples of their implementation or violations. The chapter specifically addresses the issues such as the obligation to inform the patient of the medical procedure, the legal conditions for the effectiveness of consent to treatment and the principle of access to medical documentation. Presentation of patients' rights is made from the perspective of fulfilling the duties of medical personnel working in hospitals. The authors make extensive use of current case law of the European Court of Human Rights. The undeniable advantage of the publication is to present selected theses of Polish court rulings issued in cases of violation of patient rights.