You Have the Right to....

• Patient has the right to respectful care given by competent personnel.
• Patient has the right to have a family member or representative of his or her choice and his or her own physician notified promptly of his or her admission to the hospital.
• The patient has the right to participate in the development and implementation of his or her plan of care.
• Patient has the right, upon request to be given the name of his attending physician, the name of all other physicians directly participating in his care, and the name and functions of other healthcare persons having direct contact with the patient.
• Patient has the right to every consideration of his privacy concerning his own medical care program. Case discussion, consultation, examination and treatment are considered confidential and should be conducted discreetly.
• Patient has the right to have all records pertaining to his medical care treated as confidential except as otherwise provided by law or third party contractual arrangements.
• A patient has the right to know what hospital rules and regulations apply to his conduct as a patient.
• Patient has the right to expect emergency procedures to be implemented without unnecessary delay.
• Patient has the right to good quality care and high professional standards that are continually maintained and reviewed.
• Patient has the right to full information in laymen’s terms, concerning his diagnosis, treatment and prognosis; including information about alternative treatments and possible complications. When it is not medically advisable to give such information to the patient, the information shall be given on his behalf to the patient’s next of kin or other appropriate person.
• Except for emergencies, the physician must obtain the necessary informed consent prior to the start of any procedure or treatment or both.
• A patient, or in the event the patient is unable to give informed consent, a legally responsible party has the right to be advised when a physician is considering the patient as part of a medical care research program or donor program, and the patient, or legally responsible party, must give informed consent prior to actual participation in such a program. A patient, or legally responsible party, may, at any time, refuse to continue in any such program to which he has previously given informed consent.
• Patient has the right to refuse any drugs, treatment, or procedure offered by the hospital, to the extent permitted by law, and a physician shall inform the patient of the medical consequences of the patient’s refusal of any drugs, treatments, or procedure.
• A patient has the right to formulate advance directives and appoint a surrogate to make health care decisions on his/her behalf to the extent permitted by law.
• A patient has the right to assistance in obtaining consultation with another physician at the patient’s request and own expense .
• Patient has the right to medical and nursing services without discrimination based upon race, color, religion, sex, sexual preference, national origin, or source of payment.
• The patient who does not speak English should have access, where possible, to an interpreter.
• The hospital shall provide the patient, or patient designee, upon request, access to all information contained in his medical records, unless the attending physician for medical reasons specifically restricts access.
• The patient has the right to expect good management techniques to be implemented within the hospital considering effective use of the time of the patient and to avoid the personal discomfort of the patient.
• When medically permissible, a patient may be transferred to another facility only after he or his next of kin (or other legally responsible representative) has received complete information and an explanation concerning the needs for the alternatives to such a transfer. The institution to which the patient is to be transferred must have accepted the patient for transfer.
• The patient has the right to examine and receive a detailed explanation of his bill.
• Patient has the right to full information and counseling on the availability of known financial resources for his healthcare.
• A patient has the right to expect that the healthcare facility will provide a mechanism whereby he is informed upon discharge of his continuing healthcare requirements following discharge and the means for meeting them.
• Patient has the right to be free from all forms of abuse or harassment and to receive care in a safe setting.
• Patient cannot be denied the right to access to an individual or agency that is authorized to act on his behalf to assert or protect the rights set out in this section.
• Patient has the right to be informed of his rights at the earliest possible moment in the course of hospitalization.
• If at any time during hospitalization, the patient feels that any of the above rights and Commitments has not been recognized, the patient and/or family are encouraged to call the Patient Advocate at (610) 383-8545. In addition, the patient may contact the Pennsylvania Dept. of Health at 1-800-254-5164.

You Have the Responsibility to...

Under Pennsylvania law, the Hospital also has the right to expect the patient to fulfill patient responsibilities as may be stated in Hospital policies affecting patient care and conduct. They are:

• Observation of the no smoking policy.
• Observation of visiting hours.
• The prompt payment of bills, unless other arrangements have been made.
• To update Hospital records if a patient changes a name, address or telephone number during hospitalization, or during the few months immediately following a patient’s discharge.
• We expect that you will:
  • Ask your doctor or nurse what to expect regarding pain and pain management.
  • Discuss pain relief options with your doctor or nurse.
  • Work with your doctor and nurse to develop pain management plan.
  • Ask for pain relief when pain FIRST begins.
  • Help the doctor and nurse measure your pain.
  • Tell the doctor or nurse if your pain is not relieved.
• The obligation and responsibility to fully answer questions. For example, questions may include:
  • Current medications
  • Previous medications or drugs and the effect these may have had upon the patient
  • Current and previous health problems
  • Previous illnesses or illnesses of family members
  • Previous hospitalizations
  • Perceptions and management of pain
• Consideration of other patients, visitors or Hospital personnel, particularly with regard to noise, smoking, playing television or radio, etc. Copies of the Patient’s Bill of Rights and the Patient’s Responsibilities to the Hospital will be given to a patient within 24 hours of admission. Patients or their families who have questions about the content of the Patient’s Bill of Rights and the Patient’s Responsibilities to the Hospital will have these directed to the appropriate Department Director, Vice-President and/or President (designee).