Your Rights and Responsibilities

These rights and responsibilities apply to all patients, including the neonate, child, adolescent and adult.

Patient Rights

“Patient” refers to patient and/or personal representative.

Human Dignity
Recognizing the basic rights of human beings is always of great importance. It is our intention to always respect the patient’s inherent dignity. As a hospital, we have a primary responsibility to ensure that your rights are preserved while under our care. To this end, the patient will be routinely consulted on matters relating to his or her care, medical treatment and discharge. If a patient is unable to speak on his or her own behalf, an appropriate family member or the personal representative will be consulted.

Nondiscrimination
In accordance with Title VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and their implementing regulations, the patient shall be granted impartial access to treatment or accommodations that are available or medically indicated regardless of race, creed, sex, national origin, religion or source of payment.

Pain Relief
The patient has the right to expect assessment of his or her pain and a process of mutual planning to address the management of pain. The patient also has the right to receive information about pain and pain relief measures.

Request for or Refusal of Treatment
The patient has the right to participate in the development and implementation of his or her plan of care and to request or refuse treatment. The patient has the right to refuse treatment, based on his or her own personal, moral or religious beliefs – to the extent permitted by law – and to be informed of the medical consequences of his or her refusal.

Information
The patient, or the patient’s personal representative, has the right to receive from the patient’s care treatment team complete and current information concerning his or her diagnosis, treatment and any known prognosis. This information should be communicated in terms the patient can reasonably understand.

Identity
The patient has the right to know the identity and professional status of individuals providing service to him or her.

Privacy and Confidentiality
The patient has the right, within the law, to personal privacy and confidentiality. All communication and records pertaining to his or her care are confidential and read only by individuals directly involved in treatment, payment or operations of the hospital.

Consent
The patient has the right

• Not to be subjected to any procedure without voluntary, competent consent or the consent of a personal representative, except in an emergency.
• To be informed of, and voluntarily give or refuse consent of participation in, any human experimentation or other research/educational projects affecting his/her care or treatment.
• To advanced directives.

Safety
The patient has the right to expect reasonable safety in the medical center’s practice and environment. This includes the right to be free from physical or mental abuse and corporal punishment. The patient has the right to be free from restraint or seclusion, of any form, imposed by staff as means of coercion, discipline, convenience or retaliation. Restraints will only be used when necessary to ensure the immediate physical safety of the patient, staff or others and must be discontinued at the earliest possible time.

Communication
The patient has the right of access to people outside the hospital by means of visitors and by verbal and written communication. When the patient does not speak or understand the predominant language of the community, he or she should have access to an interpreter.

Continuity of Care
The patient has the right to expect reasonable continuity of care and assistance in locating alternative services when indicated. The patient has the right to choose home health or nursing home care at discharge.

Transfer
The patient has the right not to be transferred to another facility unless he or she has received a complete explanation of the need for the transfer, the alternatives to such a transfer, and acceptance by another physician.

Hospital Charges
The patient has the right to request, examine and receive an itemized and detailed explanation of his or her bill, regardless of the source of payment. The patient has the right to notice of termination of his eligibility for reimbursement by any third-party payer for the cost of his or her care.

Smoke-Free
According to Arkansas law, all hospitals must be smoke-free (Ark Code Ann. § 20-27-704 et seq). Smoking on the BRMC campus could result in a Class C misdemeanor charge. We appreciate the cooperation of all patients and visitors in keeping BRMC smoke-free.

Patient Grievance
A patient’s grievance will be addressed, in a timely manner, by the department head/patient care unit manager where the patient is located or the risk manager at 508-1012, the Marketing Department at 508-1883 or the chief executive officer at 508-1039. A written grievance/ complaint may be addressed to any of the four contacts above and sent to Baxter Regional Medical Center, 624 Hospital Drive, Mountain Home, AR 72653.

A patient may contact the Arkansas Department of Health, regardless of whether he or she used the medical center’s grievance process.

Arkansas Department of Health
5800 W. 10th St., Suite 400
Little Rock, AR 72204
501-661-2201

All patients grievances will be addressed in accordance with state and federal guidelines.

Patient Responsibilities

If a patient lacks the capacity to exercise these responsibilities on his or her behalf, the obligation falls to appropriate family members or a personal representative.

Provision of Information
The patient has the responsibility to provide, to the best of his or her knowledge, accurate and complete information about matters relating to his or her health. The patient is also responsible for making known whether he or she clearly understands the medical treatment plan and what is expected of him or her.

Advance Directives, Religious Beliefs
The patient has the responsibility of informing his or her physician and the hospital of any advance directives (such as a “Living Will”) or religious beliefs that he or she wishes to have honored.

Compliance with Instructions
The patient is responsible for following the treatment plan recommended by the practitioner primarily responsible for his or her care. The patient is also responsible for following the instructions of treatment team.

Refusal of Treatment
The patient is responsible for the consequences if he or she refuses recommended treatment or does not follow the practitioner’s instructions.

Hospital Charges
The patient is responsible for ensuring that the financial obligations of his or her care are fulfilled as promptly as possible.

Hospital Rules and Regulations
The patient is responsible for following rules and regulations affecting patient care and conduct.

Respect and Consideration
The patient is responsible for considerate behavior toward other patients, visitors and hospital personnel and for respect of rights and property.

Patient Conflicts
Patient care conflicts regarding admission, treatment and discharge issues will be addressed by the department head, nurse leader or the administrative staff member who is responsible for the service. Depending on the nature of the conflict, the issue may instead be addressed by the attending physician, the chief of services or the chief of staff. The final authority for addressing patient complaints and patient care conflicts is the medical center’s chief executive officer.

Arkansas No-Smoking Law
The patient is responsible for upholding the law that all hospital property must be smoke-free (Ark Code Ann. § 20-27-704 et seq).

624 Hospital Drive
Mountain Home, Arkansas 72653
870-508-1000
baxterregional.org