Patient Rights & Responsibilities

As a patient you are a key member of your Health Care Team and have the right to:

Receive quality, safe care within the range of services that the hospital provides.
Receive care without being discriminated against because of race, color, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, national origin, (including, but not limited to, English proficiency), sex, gender identity including sex stereotyping, age, disability, culture, or ability to pay.
Be informed of the hospital’s policies about your rights and health care.
Be treated with respect and dignity and be protected from abuse, neglect and harassment.
Know the names and roles of hospital staff caring for you.
Have a loved one or other person and your doctor told promptly of your admission to the hospital.
Be informed about your health problems, treatment options, and likely outcomes so you can take part in developing, implementing, and revising your plan of care and discharge planning.
Discharge planning includes deciding about care options, choice of agencies, or need to transfer to another facility.
Information about the outcome of your care, including unanticipated outcomes.
Request, accept, and/or refuse treatment as allowed by the hospital policy and the law.
Have an interpreter to help you understand medical and financial information.
Have your pain assessed and managed.
Have privacy and confidentiality when you are receiving care.
Practice and seek advice about your cultural, spiritual and ethical beliefs, as long as this does not interfere with the well being of others.
Request spiritual services.
Request a consult from the Ethics Committee to help you work through tough decisions about your care.
Consent or refuse to take part in research studies.
Be free from seclusion or restraints unless medically necessary or needed to keep you or others safe.
Have a safe environment, including the safe keeping of your clothes and other items.
Take part in decisions about blocking visitors, mail or phone calls, as needed for your care or safety.
Have an Advance Directive (health care directive, power of attorney for health care, or living will) that states your wishes and values for health care decisions when you cannot speak for yourself and will be honored to the extent allowed by hospital policy and law.
Receive compassionate care at the end of life.
Donate, request, or refuse organ and tissue donations.
Review your medical record and receive answers to questions you may have about it. You may obtain copies of your medical record at a fair cost in a reasonable time frame.
Have your records kept confidential. They will only be shared with your caregivers and those who can legally see them.
Receive a copy of and details about your bill.
Ask about and be informed of business relationships among payors, hospitals, educational institutions, and other health care providers that may affect your care.
Be informed of the hospital’s grievance policies. You may share a grievance about your care either verbally or in writing and receive a timely written notice of the resolution. If you have a grievance or concern, please contact the department supervisor.

If the issue is not satisfactorily resolved, contact the Patient Relations Department, Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm, or the House Supervisor during off-hours through the hospital switchboard, by dialing “0” from an internal phone or by dialing the hospital’s main number and selecting “0” from an outside line.

You also have the right to contact the Illinois Department of Public Health at 535 West Jefferson Street, Springfield, Illinois 62761 (Phone 1.800.252.4343) and/or the Joint Commission Office of Quality Monitoring at One Renaissance Boulevard, Oakbrook Terrace, IL 60181 (Phone 1.800.994.6610).

Rights of Children & Patients Lacking Capacity

A patient has the rights stated here even if he or she is not able to exercise these rights. If the patient is a child, then the child’s parent, guardian, or other legally authorized responsible person may exercise the child’s rights on his or her behalf. Similarly, if the patient is declared incompetent, cannot understand a proposed treatment or procedure, or cannot communicate his or her wishes about treatment, then the patient’s guardian, next of kin, or other legally authorized responsible person may exercise the patient’s rights on his or her behalf.

As a patient, you/your family have the responsibility to:

Provide correct and complete information about yourself and your health, including present complaints, past health problems and hospital visits, medications you have taken or are taking (including prescriptions, over-the-counter, and herbal medicine), and any other information you think your caregivers need to know.
Discuss and share your views about your care/service needs and expectations, including your pain needs and any perceived risk or safety issues.
Provide correct and complete information about your Advance Directive if you have one and provide a current copy.
Follow your agreed-upon care plan and report any unexpected changes in your condition to your doctor.
Ask questions when you do not understand your care, treatment, and services or what you are expected to do. Express any concerns about your ability to follow your proposed plan or course of care, treatment, and services.
Accept consequences for the outcomes if you do not follow the care, treatment and service plan.
Follow the hospital’s rules and regulations.
Respect the property, privacy, dignity, and confidentiality of patients and others in the hospital.
Respect hospital staff and property and help control noise.
Follow the hospital’s smoking policies.
Keep a safe environment free of drugs, alcohol, and weapons.
Provide correct and complete information about your financial situation as best you can and promptly meet any financial obligations agreed to with the hospital.

For more information about your Patient Rights and Responsibilities, please call the Patient Relations Department, Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm, or the House Supervisor during off-hours through the hospital switchboard, by dialing “0” from an internal phone or by dialing the hospital’s main number and selecting “0” from an outside line.

Visitation Rights

Southern Illinois Healthcare (SIH) recognizes the importance visitation plays in your care.
The visitation policy is available for your review at your request.
SIH employees are trained in the implementation of the visitation policy.
You may expect to be informed of your visitation rights including any clinical restrictions or limitations.
You may expect to determine who may or may not visit you.
Our healthcare professionals use their best clinical judgment in determining when visitation is, and is not, appropriate. Best clinical judgment considers all aspects of your health and safety.
There may be situations in which visitation is restricted or limited. These situations may include, but are not limited to:
- Infection control issues
- Interference with the care of other patients
- An existing court order restricting contact
- Visitors engaging in disruptive, threatening, or violent behavior of any kind
- You or your roommate needs rest or privacy
- You are undergoing care interventions
- During a specific period of time, such as receiving a procedure or treatment
- Minimum age requirement for a child visitor
You may identify a support person. This person does not have to be your representative, such as a power of attorney for healthcare.
If you are incapacitated and more than one person asserts to be the support person, each person may be asked to provide documentation supporting the claim.
If you have both a representative and a support person who are not the same individual, and they disagree on who should be allowed to visit you, SIH must defer to the decisions of your representative.
Your representative has the authority to exercise your rights to designate and deny visitors just as you would if you were capable of doing so.