Patient
Rights in Turkey
In Turkey, Ministry of Health General
Directorate of Curative Services regulates and supervises the patient rights
implications, promoting the development of patients' rights practices
acros the country and preventing their violation.
The basis of patients' rights is put
forward in the Treaty of Lisbon. The Treaty, valid in all EU countries, is
mainly related to physician-patient relationship.
Fundamental rights as defined in the
Treaty are as follows:
Choosing
Treatment
- Adequately informed patient has the right to refuse
or accept the proposed treatment.
- Patients have the right to expect respect for the
confidentiality of information about his private life and medical information
by physicians.
Choice
of Physician Freely
- The patient has the right to choice of physician freely.
- The patient has the right to be treated by the
physician who decides ethically and freely without any external influence.
Choosing
Representatives
- Every patient has the right to die with dignity.
- The patient has the right to accept or reject the
spiritual solace with the help of proper religious representative.
In
Turkey, anyone who applies to a medical institution for health care services is
entitled to the following rights:
- Utilization of services in general: The principles
of justice and equity within the framework of activities to promote healthy
living and take advantage of preventive health services,
- Equality in access to service: To receive services
without taking into account race, language, religion, creed, sex, political
opinion, philosophical belief, economic and social conditions.
- Information: To obtain information regarding the
variety of the medical facilities and services
- Selecting and changing medical institution: Select
and change the medical institution and health services to benefit from the
chosen medical institution,
- Staff recognition, select and change: Learning the
identities and titles of physicians who provide healthcare, selecting and
changing them,
- Information request: Asking any kind of information related
to health status, verbally and in writing,
- Privacy: Right to have all kinds of health services
in a private environment,
- Consent and permission: Medical interventions
consent and permission,
- Refusing and stopping treatment: Refusing the treatment
or asking to stop the treatment,
- Safety: Receiving health care in safe environment,
- Performing religious duties: to fulfill religious
obligations in the extent of the facilities and within the measures taken by
the administration of the medical institution,
- Receiving respectful service: Receiving health care
with respect, care and attention with friendly, gentle, compassionate approach,
- Comfort: Receiving health services in hygienic
conditions and in an environment that is disposed of noise and other disturbing
factors,
- Visitors: Receiving visitors in accordance with the
procedures and principles of Institutions and organizations,
- Having company: Keeping a companion within the
legislation of the medical institution and the approval of the physician,
- Rights to apply, complain and sue: If the patient’s
rights have been violated, he/she has the right to file complaints and
lawsuits,
- Continuous service: patients take advantage of
health care services, as long as it is needed,
- Expression: patients have the right to express their
thoughts about the services provided,
Some of the other rights that are included in the
European Charter of Patients’ Rights, applied by EU are as follows:
Right
to Preventive Measures
Each individual has right to receive appropriate
prophylaxis treatment. To achieve this goal, the task of health care is to
provide the availability of free health services on a regular basis for various
groups at risk and to ensure the availability of the results of scientific
research and technological innovations.
Right
to Choose Freely
Every individual who has sufficient knowledge will
have the right to choose different treatment procedures (methods) and the
person who will give treatment. The patient has the right to decide diagnosis
and treatment, which method is used, and the doctor, specialist or hospital.
All the obstacles that restrict the use of this right should be removed. A
person who does not trust his/her doctor may request or choose another doctor.
Respect
for Patients' Time
Every individual has the right to receive necessary
treatment within a swift and predetermined period of time. This right applies
to every stage of the treatment. Determining the waiting time is the duty of
medical services taking into account of urgency of the situation on the basis
of specific standards. Every individual must be guaranteed to have service and
if a waiting list is needed, immediate sign of the individual must be provided.
The patients have the right to see the waiting list provided that the privacy
of every individual is respected.
If the same quality of health care is not provided in a predetermined period of
time, the possibility of alternative services must be guaranteed and the costs
borne by this must be reimbursed within a reasonable time to the patient.
Physicians should allow enough time for their patients, to provide information.
Right
for Quality Standards
Every individual has right to take the advantage of
the standards and specifications of high quality health care services. The
right to high quality health care requires the medical institutions’ and health
care staff's to implement technical performance, comfort and human relations on
satisfying levels.
Innovation
Rights (Article 10)
Regardless of economic or financial conditions
(without taking into account the reasons), each individual has right to take
advantage of international standards, innovations, including diagnostic
procedures.
Healthcare Services’ task is to conduct research in the field of rare diseases
and support them in taking into account the biomedicine. The research results
should be published appropriately.
Right
to Have Personalized Treatment
Each individual has the right to be diagnosed and be
treated based on his/her individual needs. For this purpose, Healthcare
Services, disregarding the economic situation of the individual, should always
provide flexible schedules in which treatment is prior.
Compensation
Right
Each individual who suffered physical or moral and
psychological damages during the treatment is entitled to receive compensation
in a short time. Health Services should ensure the right for compensation even
if the liable party cannot be determined, regardless of damage and its cause
(severity).
How to
obtain and implement these rights?
This article clearly states that all individual
physicians and medical institutions/organizations in Turkey have malpractice
insurance. In case of any incorrect treatment and subsequent permanent or
temporary damage, the patient shall have the right to complain will be entitled
to receive compensation.