Patient Rights and Responsibilities

It is your right as a Dreyer patient:

• To considerate and respectful care.
• To be informed of your rights and have them explained in a language that you understand.
• To receive care without regard to your race, color, creed, national origin, religion, ability, age, gender, disability, or lifestyle.
• To know the identity of physicians, nurses and others involved in your care.
• To know the immediate and long-term financial implications of treatment choices, insofar as they are known. You have the right to be informed of charges for services as well as payment options.
• To expect that efforts will be made to provide you continuous, coordinated, and appropriate care.
• To expect to be informed of your health status, including complete and current information concerning your condition. You should receive from your physician and other direct caregivers relevant, current and understandable information concerning diagnosis, treatment options and prognosis. You are entitled to the opportunity to discuss and request information related to the specific procedures and/or treatments, the risks involved, and the possible length of recuperation, and the medically reasonable alternatives and their accompanying risks and benefits.
• To expect that we will communicate with you in a manner that you can understand.
• To make decisions regarding your care prior to and during the course of treatment by being involved in your care planning and treatment. This includes making informed decisions regarding your care, as well as a right to accept or refuse recommended tests or treatments. In cases of refusal, you are entitled to other appropriate care and services.
• To expect to receive a reasonable response to any requests you have for appropriate and medically indicated care and services.
• To be informed of any proposed research or experimental treatment that may be considered in your care, and to consent or to decline to participate in proposed research studies or human experimentation affecting care and treatment or requiring direct patient involvement and to have those studies fully explained prior to consent.
• To express complaints or grievances concerning the quality of care or service. To be informed of available resources for resolving disputes or grievances.
• You have a right to review the records pertaining to your medical care and to have the information explained or interpreted as necessary.
• To have personal privacy. Case discussion, consultation, examination and treatment should be conducted so as to protect your privacy.
• To expect that all communications and records pertaining to your care will be treated as confidential, except in cases such as suspected abuse and public health hazards when reporting is permitted by law.
• To receive care in a safe setting and environment.
• To request and be informed of information concerning the existence of business relationships with other health care providers, educational institutions or payers that may influence your treatment plan.
• To expect that your treatment preferences will be responded to, as delineated in your Advance Directive.

It is your responsibility as a Dreyer patient:

• To provide all personal and family health information needed to provide you with appropriate care.
• To participate to the best of your ability in making decisions about your medical treatment, and to comply with the agreed upon plan of care.
• To ask questions of your physician or other care providers when you do not understand any information or instructions.
• To maintain appointments as scheduled, or to reschedule in a timely fashion.
• To inform your physician and other care providers if you anticipate problems in following prescribed treatment.
• To recognize the impact of your lifestyle on your personal health.
• To inform your physician or other care provider if you desire a transfer of care to another physician.
• To be considerate of others receiving and providing care. To observe relevant office policies and procedures.
• To accept financial responsibility for health care services and to work cooperatively with Advocate/Dreyer to resolve financial obligations.