The Study Of Patient's Rights To Know

This article analyses the statutory rights to be informed enjoyed by patients, who come to a hospital for medical treatment on their diseases or injury while falling ill or injured, or who come to a hospital for physical examination to confirm that their bodies are in condition, or who come to a hospital for special medical services, such as cosmetic operation, artificial insemination and so on. In author's opinion, the rights to be informed are granted by law to patients, so patients are privileged to know all the information which is concerned with their disease and treatment.The basic meaning of the rights of the patients to know is that the patient is entitled to know all the information concerned with his disease and treatment and to freely make decision on whether a medical method should be taken to treat his disease. The rights of the patient to know are composed of the right of informed consent and other rights to know. The right of informed consent is the key content of the rights to know, which contains that the doctor must inform the patient of those information about the patient's disease, treatment methods, potential risks and other alternative treatment methods etc. in the course of treatment, and get the consent of the patient before exercising any treatment on the patient; otherwise, the doctor will be responsible for the illegal infringement on the patient's body.While the patient enjoys the rights to know, the doctor assumes the duty to inform. Why it is a doctor's statutory duty to inform the patient with those information concerning patient's disease is that the patient could not exercise the right to make proper decision if the doctor does not tell him all the information concernedwith his disease and treatments because the patient does not have enough medical professional knowledge to get all necessary information by himself. Moreover, the consent of the patient can prevent the infringement on the patient's body from illegal battery. On the basis of analysis on the patient's right to know, the author holds that the law system in mainland on the protection of the right to know enjoyed by patients should be improved to meet the needs of present society and medical market. What should be done is to legislate a comprehensive medical law, to enact a series of special acts, such as the law of protection on the patient's right. Moreover, the contents of the right to know should be written clearly in the concerned laws as a statutory right.