HOSPICE PATIENT BILL OF RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES
As a hospice patient, you have the right to be informed of your rights and responsibilities. The following apply to you:
Dignity and Respect
You have the right to:
- Be treated with respect;
- Have a relationship with Shepherd’s Cove Hospice that is based on honesty and ethical standards of conduct;
- Be informed of procedures to lodge complaints with Shepherd’s Cove Hospice;
- Voice grievances without fear of discrimination or reprisal for having done so;
- Exercise rights as a patient and citizen;
- Be free of restraint, interference, coercion, discrimination, or reprisal; and
- Recommend changes in policies and services.
Quality of Care
You have the right to:
- Be fully informed of all services offered by Shepherd’s Cove Hospice;
- Receive appropriate and compassionate care, regardless of diagnosis, race, age, gender, creed, disability, sexual orientation, place of residence, or the ability to pay for services rendered;
- Receive effective pain and symptom control;
- Receive care of the highest quality;
- Choose your attending physician;
- Be fully informed of your medical condition unless documented by the physician that you should not be told.;
- Be admitted by the hospice agency only if it is assured that all necessary palliative and supportive services will be provided to promote the your physical, psychological, social, and spiritual well-being;
- Be told what to do in the case of an emergency, whether medical or of a nature that threatens safety;
- Be assured that all medically related hospice care is provided in accordance with your physician’s orders and that a plan of care, developed by your physician and the hospice interdisciplinary group in conjunction with you, specifies the services to be provided and their frequency and duration;
- To be assured that all related personal care is provided by an appropriately trained hospice care assistant who is supervised by a nurse or other qualified hospice professional;
- To be assured that individual support of family members during their period of bereavement will be given by trained, caring, sensitive individuals; and
- To be free from mental and physical abuse, including chemical and/or physical restraints unless authorized in writing by your physician for a specific period of time for your protection.
- Be provided with appropriate language assistance, communication aids and services without charge and in a timely manner, including qualified interpreters, translated documents, auxiliary aids, etc.
Decision-making
You have the right to:
- Be advised of the right to participate in planning of your care;
- Participate in the planning of your care and in planning any changes in the care;
- Be notified of the care that is to be furnished, the Shepherd’s Cove Hospice personnel who will furnish the care, and the frequency of the services that are proposed to be furnished;
- Refuse services and to be advised of the consequences of doing so;
- Be informed of and given the opportunity to complete an Advance Directive;
- Have a legal representative designated in accordance with state law as having power of attorney;
- Request a change in caregiver without fear of reprisal or discrimination; and
- Be informed if a transfer or discharge is necessary thirty days in advance.
Privacy
You have the right to:
- Confidentiality with regard to information about your health, social, and financial circumstances; and
- Expect Shepherd’s Cove Hospice to release information only as consistent with HIPAA security and privacy policy.
Financial
You have the right to:
- Manage your own personal financial affairs;
- Be informed of the extent to which payment may be expected from Medicare, Medicaid, or any other payer known to Shepherd’s Cove Hospice;
- Be informed of any charges that will not be covered by Medicare or the appropriate payer;
- Be informed of the charges for which you may be liable;
- Have access, on request, to all bills for service received, regardless of whether they are paid out of pocket or by another party; and
- Be informed of the hospice’s ownership status and its affiliation with any entities to which you are referred.
Inpatient Care
As a patient in the inpatient facility, you have the right to:
- Associate and communicate privately with persons of your choice;
- Meet with and participate in activities of social, religious, and community groups as you choose;
- Send and receive unopened mail;
- Retain and use personal clothing and possessions as long as space permits and the rights of other patients are not violated; and
- Visit privately with spouses and/or significant others.
As a hospice patient, you have the responsibility to:
- Communicate your needs to Shepherd’s Cove Hospice and assist hospice staff in planning your care;
- Provide hospice with accurate and complete information about your health history;
- Inform hospice about the existence or changes in their advance directives for healthcare;
- Remain under a doctor’s care while receiving hospice services;
- Provide a safe environment, free of illegal activity, in which the staff may perform their duties;
- Assist hospice staff in developing and maintaining a safe environment in which their care can be provided; and
- Ensure the proper use and handling of prescription medications.
- Communicate the need for language assistance, communication aids and services such as but not limited to qualified interpreters, translated documents, auxiliary aids, etc., to Shepherd’s Cove Hospice and hospice staff.
