Pre-arrival : Patient’s Rights and Patient’s Responsibilities

Patient’s Rights 

1. A patient has the basic rights to medical and healthcare services at a professional standard without any discrimination as legally enacted in the Thai Constitution. 
2. Patients who seek medical and healthcare services have the right to accurate and sufficient information regarding illness, examination, treatment, advantages, and disadvantages of the examination from the medical practitioner with an understood language to help with a decision to consent or refuse healthcare services, except in case of emergency or a life-threatening situation. 
3. Patients at risk, in critical condition or near death, are entitled to receive urgent and immediate relief from their medical practitioner as necessary, regardless of whether the patient requests assistance or not. 
4. Patients have the rights to know first name and surname and the specialty of the practitioner(s) who provides their care. 
5. It is the right of the patient to request a second opinion from another medical practitioner with other specialties, who are not involved in the immediate care of him/her, as well as the right to change the place of medical service or treatment. This is according to the criteria of existing patient’s rights. 
6. The patient has the right to expect that his/her personal information is kept confidential by the medical practitioner, the only exception being in cases with the consent of the patient or due to legal obligation. 
7. The patient is entitled to demand complete current information regarding his/her role in the research and the risks involved in order to make a decision to participate in/or withdraw from the medical research being carried out by his/her health care provider. 
8. The patient has the right to know or demand full and current information about his/her medical treatment as it appears in the medical record as requested according to hospital’s procedures. With respect to this, the information obtained must not infringe upon other individual’s personal information and rights. 
9. The father / mother or legal representative may use their rights in case of a child under the age of eighteen or who is physically or mentally handicapped wherein he/she could not exercise his/her own rights. 

Patient’s Responsibilities 

1. Patients are responsible for asking for information and potential risks before signing an informed consent for diagnostic or treatment procedures. 
2. Patients are responsible for providing truthful and complete medical and other information to the attending healthcare professionals. 
3. Patients are responsible for cooperating and following healthcare professionals’ recommendations about medical care and should be notified when the compliance may not be possible.  
4. Patients are responsible for cooperating, complying, and following hospital rules and regulations: 
   • Patients are responsible for providing complete and correct information for reimbursement from an insurance company as soon as possible after receiving an invoice from the hospital. 
   • Patients are responsible for providing a copy of advance directives, living will, and written decision of preferred treatment options. 
   • Patients are responsible for the medical appointments by informing the hospital if rescheduling is needed. 
   • Patients are responsible for direct cooperation with hospital management representatives to resolve a complaint. 
   • Patients are responsible for bringing only personal items essential for the hospital stay not including valuables. 
   • Patients are responsible for not leaving the hospital facility without permission from the doctor or nurse to ensure patient safety. 
   • Patients are responsible for receiving medical and nursing care only from the hospital but not by other persons or by themselves except when instructed by the hospital to do so. 
5. Patients are responsible for treating healthcare professionals, other patients, and visitors with courtesy and respect. 
6. Patients are responsible for providing the hospital with health insurance benefit information with proper documentation. 
7. Patients are responsible for being aware of the following facts: 
   • Healthcare professionals who perform standard and ethical practice are protected by law and have the rights to be protected from unfair accusations. 
   • Medical care refers to a current medical practice that is based on scientific evidence to show higher benefits than risks to the patient. 
   • Medical care cannot diagnose, prevent, or treat all diseases or condition. 
   • Any medical care can result in unexpected consequences despite the fact that the healthcare professional has been extremely careful in any situation. 
   • Any test for disease screening, diagnosis, and treatment monitoring might have inaccurate results because of limitations of the technological systems used, and are not controllable by current standards. 
   • Healthcare professionals have the rights to choose an evidence-based medical treatment option in a given context and limitations as well as to consult or refer the patient as appropriate. 
   • Healthcare professionals may consult or refer the patient who are not in an emergency or life-threatening condition. 
   • Medical care provided by healthcare professionals might be compromised if  necessary health information is not disclosed by the patient. 
   • Emergency room is only for patients who are in emergency and life-threatening condition. 

Any act of physical violence, verbal threats or intimidation towards the hospital staff will not be tolerated. Anyone, who uses violence against hospital staff, is prosecuted and may be banned from using hospital services. (Announced on 12 Aug. 2015)