Patients Bill of Rights
Sutter Davis Hospital
Every person who enters Sutter Davis Hospital for care has rights. A copy of these rights will be provided to each patient at the time of registration. If necessary, interpretation services will be provided to the patient to assist in communication of these rights.
As a patient, you shall have the right to:
- Exercise these rights without regard to sex, economic status, educational background, race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, sexual orientation or marital status, or the source of payment for care.
- Considerate and respectful care in a safe setting free from verbal or physical abuse or harassment.
- Knowledge of the name of the physician who has primary responsibility for coordinating the care, and the names and professional relationship of other physicians and non-physicians who will see the patient.
- Receive information about your illness, the course of treatment and prospects for recovery in terms that you can understand.
- Receive as much information about any proposed treatment or procedure as you may need in order to give informed consent or to refuse the course of treatment. Except in emergencies, this information shall include a description of the procedure or treatment, the medically significant risk involved in this treatment, alternate course of treatment or non treatment and the risks involved in each, and to know the name of the person who will carry out the procedure or treatment.
- Participate actively in decisions regarding medical care, including the development of the plan of care, the status of your health, and to the extent permitted by law, the right to refuse treatment. You have the right to appropriate assessment and management of pain. If you suffer from severe chronic intractable pain, you have the option to request or reject the use of any or all modalities to relieve your pain, including opiate medication. Your doctor may refuse to prescribe you opiate medication, but if so, must inform you that there are physicians who specialize in the treatment of severe chronic intractable pain with methods that include the use of opiates.
- Formulate advance directives and have hospital staff and practitioners who provide care in the hospital comply with these directives. You have the right to request or refuse treatment. However, you do not have the right to demand treatment or services deemed medically unnecessary or inappropriate.
- Full consideration of personal privacy concerning the medical care program. Case discussion, consultation, examination and treatment are confidential and should be conducted discreetly. You have the right to be advised of the reason for the presence of any individual during your medical care.
- Confidential treatment of all communications and records pertaining to the care and the stay in the hospital. Written permission shall be obtained before medical records can be made available to anyone not directly concerned with your care. You have the ability to access information contained in your medical record within a reasonable time frame.
- Reasonable responses to any reasonable request made for services.
- Leave the hospital even against the advice of physicians.
- 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.
- Be advised if the hospital/personal physician proposes to engage in or perform human experimentation affecting care of treatment. You have the right to refuse to participate in such research projects.
- Be informed of continuing health care requirements following discharge from the hospital.
- Examine and receive an explanation of your bill regardless of source of payment.
- Know which hospital rules and policies apply to your conduct while a patient.
- Have all patients’ rights apply to the person who may have legal responsibility to make decisions regarding medical care on your behalf.
- Designate visitors of your choosing, you have the 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 patient, a member of the health facility staff, or other visitor to the health facility, or would significantly disrupt the operations of the facility. The facility may also establish reasonable restrictions upon visitation, including restrictions upon the hours of visitation and number of visitors.
- You have indicated to the health facility staff that you no longer want this person to visit.
- Have your wishes considered for purposes of determining who may visit you if you lack decision-making capacity and to have the method of that consideration disclosed in the hospital policy on visitation. At a minimum, the hospital shall include any persons living in the household.
- This section may not be construed to prohibit a health facility from otherwise establishing reasonable restriction upon visitation, including restrictions upon the hours of visitation and number of visitors.
- Have a family member or representative of your choice and your physician notified promptly of your admission to the hospital.
- Be free from restraints and seclusion of any form used as a means of coercion, discipline, convenience or retaliation by staff.
- Participate in ethical questions that arise in the course of care, including issues of conflict resolution, withholding resuscitative services, foregoing or withdrawal of life sustaining treatment, and end-of-life decisions.
- Access to information on protective services.
- File a grievance or complaint with the facility or directly to the Department of Health Services.
IF YOU HAVE A COMPLAINT OR GRIEVANCE, CALL:
Quality Management Department
Sutter Davis Hospital
2000 Sutter Place
Davis, CA 95616
(530)759-7408
Department of Health Services
Licensing and Certification
780 Folsom Blvd.
Suite 200
Sacramento, CA 95826
(916) 229-3400 or (800)-554-0354
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