Patient Rights

A Patient at Memorial Health System Has the Right To:

A. The right to participate in the development and implementation of his or her plan of care.

B. His or her representative (as allowed under state law) has the right to make informed decisions regarding his or her care. The patient’s rights include being informed of his or her health status, being involved in care planning and treatment, and being able to request or refuse treatment. This right must not be construed as a mechanism to demand the provision of treatment or services deemed medically unnecessary or inappropriate.

C. The right to formulate advance directives and to have hospital staff and practitioners who provide care in the hospital comply with these directives.

D. The right to have a family member or representative of his or her choice and his or her own physician notified promptly of his or her admission to the hospital.

E. The right to personal privacy.

F. The right to receive care in a safe setting.

G. The right to be free from all forms of abuse or harassment.

H. The right to the confidentiality of his or her clinical records.

I. The right to access their medical records, including current medical records, upon an oral or written request, in the form and format requested by the individual if it is readily producible in such form and format (including an electronic form or format when such medical records are maintained electronically); or, if not, in a readable hard copy form or such other form and format as agreed to by the facility and the individual, and within a reasonable time frame. The hospital must not frustrate the legitimate efforts of individuals to gain access to their own medical records and must actively seek to meet these requests as quickly as its record keeping system permits; 482.13(d)(2).

J. The right to be free from restraints of any form that are not medically necessary or are used as a means of coercion, discipline, convenience, or retaliation by staff.

K. The right to be fully informed of and to consent or refuse to participate in any unusual, experimental, or research project without compromising his or her access to services.

L. The right to know the professional status of any person providing his or her care and/or services.

M. The right to know the reasons for any proposed change in the Professional Staff responsible for his or her care.

N. The right to know the reasons for his or her transfer either within or outside the hospital.

O. The relationship(s) of the hospital to other persons or organizations participating in the provision of his or her care.

P. The right of access to the cost, itemized when possible, of services rendered within a reasonable period of time.

Q. The right to be informed of the source of the hospital’s reimbursement for his or her services, and of any limitations which may be placed upon his or her care.

R. Informed of the right to have pain treated as effectively as possible.

S. A hospital must have written policies and procedures regarding the visitation rights of patients, including those setting forth any clinically necessary or reasonable restriction or limitation that the hospital may need to place on such rights and the reason for the clinical restriction or limitation. A hospital must meet the following requirements:

Inform each patient (or support person, where appropriate) of his or her visitation rights, including any clinical restriction or limitation on such rights, when he or she is informed of his or her other rights under this section
Inform each patient (or support person, where appropriate) of the right, subject to his or her consent, to receive the visitors whom he or she designates, including, but not limited to, a spouse, a domestic partner (including a same sex domestic partner), another family member, or a friend, and his or her right to withdraw or deny such consent at any time
Not restrict, limit, or otherwise deny visitation privileges on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, or disability
Ensure that all visitors enjoy full and equal visitation privileges consistent with patient preferences

The patient’s family has the right of informed consent for donation of organs and tissues. Patients have the right to address their concerns about patient care and safety to the patient representative at (740) 374- 1541 and/or an ethics committee representative. If the patient does not wish to talk with the patient representative, or if the concern is unresolved by the patient representative, the patient may contact the hospital’s Chief Executive Officer. Patients have the right to contact the Ohio Department of Health at (800) 342-0553 or visit odh.ohio.gov; or the State Quality Improvement Agency (QIO), Livanta at (888) 524-9900 or visit www.livantaqio.com/en/states/ohio; or our accrediting organization, Healthcare Facilities Accreditation Program at (312) 920-7383 or visit hfap.org

A Patient at Marietta Memorial Hospital and Selby General Hospital Has the Responsibility To:

Provide, to the best of his or her knowledge, accurate and complete information about present complaints, past illnesses, hospitalizations, medications, and other health-related matters
Report unexpected changes in his or her condition to the responsible caregiver and/or physician
Request information or additional clarification on his or her health status and proposed course of action as it relates to treatment
Inform their physician and other caregivers if he/she anticipates problems in following prescribed treatment
Communicate any pain that he or she is experiencing to the medical provider
Take an active role in the safe delivery of their care
Follow the treatment plan recommended by the physician primarily responsible for his or her care. This may include following the instructions of nurses and allied health personnel as they carry out the coordinated plan of care, implement the physician’s orders, and enforce the applicable hospital rules and regulations
Keep appointments and notify the physician or hospital when unable to do so
Be responsible for his or her actions if treatment is refused or if a physician’s instructions are not followed
Ensure that the financial obligations of his or her health care are fulfilled as promptly as possible
Follow MMH’s and SGH’s rules and regulations, including the smoking policy, the personal electrical devices policy, and the visitation policy
Be considerate of the rights of other patients and hospital personnel, and for assisting in the control of noises, smoking, and the number of visitors
Be respectful of the property of other people and of the hospital
Patients and their families must report perceived risks in their care and unexpected changes in their condition

Language Access Resources

Memorial Health System complies with applicable Federal civil rights laws and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, or sex. Memorial Health System does not exclude people or treat them differently because of race, color, national origin, age, disability, gender identity, transgender, or sex. Memorial Health System provides free aids and services to people with disabilities to communicate effectively with us including:

Qualified sign language interpreters
Written information in other formats (large print, audio, accessible electronic formats, other formats)

Memorial Health System also provides free language services to people whose primary language is not English.

If you believe that Memorial Health System has failed to provide these services or discriminated based on race, color, national origin, age, disability, gender identity, transgender, or sex, you can file a grievance with:

Service Improvement Coordinator
Memorial Health System
(740) 374-1541
grievance@mhsystem.org

If you need assistance filing a grievance, the Service Improvement Coordinator can assist you. A grievance can be filed in person, by mail, fax, phone, or email. You can also file a civil rights complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights, electronically through the Office for Civil Rights Complaint Portal, available at https://ocrportal.hhs.gov/orc/smartscreen/main.jsf or by mail or phone at:

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
200 Independence Avenue, SW Room 509F, HHH Building
Washington, D.C. 20201
(800) 368-1019, (800) 537-7697 (TDD)
Complaint forms are available at http://www.hhs.gov/orc/office/file/index.html