Patient Rights and Responsibilities
Patient Responsibilities
As a patient of Family Health you have the responsibility to:
- Become involved in specific health care decisions.
- Work collaboratively with health care providers in developing and carrying out agreed-upon treatment plans.
- Follow the provider’s plan of care and to notify your provider of any changes in your medical condition.
- Disclose relevant information and clearly communicate wants and needs.
- Present on time for a scheduled appointment and notify the clinic 24 hours in advance to cancel an appointment.
- Provide accurate and updated information regarding eligibility for services including current home address, social security number, phone number, income verification and insurance coverage.
- Use Family Health’s internal complaint process to address concerns that may arise.
- Avoid knowingly the spread of disease.
- Recognize the reality of risks and limits of the science of medical care and the human fallibility of the health care professional.
- Be aware of a health care provider’s obligation to be reasonably efficient and equitable in providing care to other patients and the community.
- Show respect for other patients and health care workers.
- Abide by administrative and operational procedures of health plans, health care providers and government health benefit programs.
- Report wrongdoing and fraud to appropriate resources or legal authorities.
- Respect the financial constraints placed on Family Health by state, federal and local laws, grants and budgets.
Patient Rights
As a patient of Family Health you have the right to:
- Receive information concerning health care plans affiliated with Family Health including provider networks, benefits and location of services and the right to choose a provider based on this information.
- Receive services with consideration of human dignity, unrestricted by consideration of age, sex, race, creed, social or economic status, handicap, personal attributes, or the nature of the illness.
- Receive considerate and respectful care from providers who are experienced and trained to meet client’s medical needs.
- Know the professional experience and certification of the health care providers, accreditation status and other measures of quality.
- Participate in decisions about treatment and to accept or refuse treatment based on understanding of health care consequences.
- Receive appropriate, clinically approved methods to assess and manage pain when those methods are available, necessary and meet health needs.
- Be informed of any research that could affect care.
- Receive services with utmost consideration of privacy and have health information maintained in the strictest confidence.
- Access to affordable health care and information about Family Health operations.
- Influence the operation of Family Health by participating in patient surveys and through established consumer groups who represent communities served by the agency.
- Request and receive an explanation of the billing charges.
- Be seen within a reasonable time of your scheduled appointment and receive an explanation for an unreasonable delay in being seen as scheduled.
- Receive extended hours of medical coverage for emergency care from a network of experienced, on-call physicians providing services for each medical specialty offered at Family Health sites.
- Be informed and to consent in writing to health care procedures performed by Family Health provider staff.
- Be informed of advance directives, receive assistance with their formulation and have them documented and followed properly at Family Health.
- The patient (under HIPAA) has the right to request access to their record, request a copy of their medical record, request an amendment to incorrect information, and request a restriction on use and disclosure of protected health information (PHI). The patient also has a right to be informed of the organization’s privacy practices.
- A fair and efficient process for resolving differences with the Family Health and to be informed of the comment, concern, compliment procedures used by Family Health.
- A guardian, next of kin, or legally authorized responsible person may exercise rights for the patient if the patient is unable to participate.