Like the human rights stated in the Bill of Rights, patients have rights that should not be violated. More so, patients have their responsibilities that should be exercised whenever one in need of medical care. As Dr Warren’s patient, Maura’s rights to informed consent, right to choose healthcare provider and facility, and the right to be informed about personal obligations and rights were violated. Furthermore, she did not exercise her responsibilities as a patient to provide accurate and complete information regarding her health and to ask questions when she did not understand the doctors’ explanations regarding treatment and diagnosis.
Right to Informed Consent
Patients have the right to substantial truthful and clear explanation using clear and understandable language regarding all the procedures proposed, whether therapeutic, rehabilitative, curative, preventive or diagnostics (Cavanaugh et al., 2016). The person to perform the procedure is also required to provide the full credential and name to the patient in case of mortality or severe side effects. Maura did not get a clear and substantive explanation, and the doctor did not provide his full name and credentials. Furthermore, she was not examined to determine if she is of sound mind to give consent; thus, her right to informed consent was violated.
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Right to Choose Healthcare Provider and Facility
Patients have the right to choose the facility or healthcare providers of their choice (Kashkoli et al., 2017). However, Maura did not get such an opportunity. She also did not get a chance to seek a second or even subsequent opinion regarding her condition and treatment options.
Right to be informed about personal obligations and rights.
Before arriving at any decision, patients should be informed about their rights and responsibilities (Ward et al., 2015). However, Maura was not advised about any of her rights or duties by the doctor before diagnosing and suggesting the best treatment plan.
Patients Responsibility
Patients have the responsibility to provide accurate information regarding the status of their health. However, Maura did not exercise her duties as a patient to facilitate proper medical intervention. Furthermore, patients are supposed to ask questions where and when necessary. However, Maura did not ask the doctor to elaborate on her condition and suggested treatments that she did not understand. Therefore, the doctor could not make other treatment decisions based on the patient’s previous medical status.
Conclusion
As a patient, Maura’s rights to informed consent, right to be informed about personal obligations and patients’ rights and the right to choose healthcare provider and facility were violated (Hirjaba et al., 2015). Furthermore, she failed to exercise her responsibility as a patient to ask questions when she did not understand the doctors’ explanations regarding treatment and diagnosis and provide accurate and complete information regarding her health.
References
Cavanaugh, T., Hopwood, R., & Lambert, C. (2016). Informed consent in the medical care of transgender and gender-nonconforming patients. AMA journal of ethics , 18 (11), 1147-1155.
Hirjaba, M., Häggman‐Laitila, A., Pietilä, A. M., & Kangasniemi, M. (2015). Patients have unwritten duties: experiences of patients with type 1 diabetes in health care. Health Expectations , 18 (6), 3274-3285.
Kashkoli, S. A., Zarei, E., Daneshkohan, A., & Khodakarim, S. (2017). Hospital responsiveness and its effect on overall patient satisfaction. International journal of health care quality assurance .
Ward, P. R., Coffey, C., & Meyer, S. (2015). Trust, choice and obligation: a qualitative study of enablers of colorectal cancer screening in South Australia. Sociology of Health & Illness , 37 (7), 988-1006.
