Hospitals cannot detain patients, bodies over payment disputes: Draft patient charter

NEW DELHI: Not discharging a patient or declining to hand over a body to relatives by hospitals over payment disputes may soon become an offence if a charter on patients’ rights released by the Union Health Ministry comes into force.

According to the draft of Patient Charter, hospitals cannot detain a patient in the hospital and not allow him or her to take discharge over procedural grounds such as a dispute in payment of hospital charges.

The charter states that the hospital must not wrongfully confine any patient, or the dead body of a patient, treated in the hospital under any circumstance.

According to a notice issued by Joint Secretary Sudhir Kumar, the ministry plans to implement the charter through state governments for the provision of proper health care by clinical establishments.

The draft charter, prepared by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), has been put up on the website of the Health Ministry, inviting suggestions and comments from the public and stakeholders. The draft states the patient and caregivers have the right to a fair and prompt redressal of their grievances and receive in writing the outcome of the complaint within 15 days from the date of the receipt of the complaint.

Every hospital and clinical establishment have the duty to set up an internal redressal mechanism as well as to comply fully and cooperate with official redressal mechanisms including making available all relevant information and taking action in full accordance with orders of the redressal body as per the Patient’s Right Charter or as per the applicable existing laws, it states.

Also, the draft states that every patient or their family members have the right to access originals or copies of case papers, indoor patient records, investigation reports during the period of admission, preferably within 24 hours and after discharge, within 72 hours.

They also have the right to seek the second opinion, and in such a case the hospital management must respect the patient’s right to second opinion, and should provide to the patient’s caregivers all necessary records and information required for seeking such opinion without any extra cost or delay.

All patients have a right to privacy, and doctors have to hold information about their health condition and treatment plan in strict confidentiality.

The draft available on the website also says that every patient and their caregivers have the right to information on the rates to be charged by the hospital for each type of service provided and facilities available on a prominent display board and a brochure.

They have a right to receive an itemised detailed bill at the time of payment.