Patients' rights

Patients' rights and duties

At MDT&T d.o.o. we are aware that quality patient care and your wellbeing with us also depend on knowing patients' rights and acting in accordance with them. We strive to respect your rights, and in turn we ask you to observe your duties as set out in the Patients' Rights Act (hereinafter ZPac-P).

Patients' rights, summarised from Article 5 of the ZPac-P:

• the right of access to healthcare and to the provision of preventive services
• the right to equal access and equal treatment in healthcare
• the right to a free choice of doctor and healthcare provider
• the right to appropriate, high-quality and safe healthcare
• the right to respect for the patient's time
• the right to be informed and to participate
• the right to make independent decisions about treatment
• the right to have previously expressed wishes respected
• the right to the prevention and relief of suffering
• the right to a second opinion
• the right to access one's medical records
• the right to privacy and the protection of personal data
• the right to have violations of patients' rights addressed
• the right to free assistance in exercising patients' rights

Patients' duties, summarised from Article 54 of the ZPac-P:

• to participate actively in protecting, strengthening and restoring your own health
• during illness, to act in accordance with the accepted professional instructions and treatment plans to which you have consented orally or in writing
• to provide the attending doctor and other competent healthcare workers and healthcare associates with all necessary and truthful information about your state of health that is known to you and relevant to your further treatment, in particular information about your current and past injuries and illnesses and their treatment, illnesses in your family, any allergies, and medicines you are taking
• to inform healthcare workers and healthcare associates of any sudden changes in your state of health that occur during treatment
• to be considerate and respectful of the privacy and other rights of other patients as well as of healthcare workers and healthcare associates
• to respect the published schedules, house rules and prescribed organisational procedures of healthcare providers
• to inform the healthcare provider in good time if you are unable to attend an examination or treatment

First consideration of violations of patients' rights and complaint procedures

You may file a complaint for the first consideration of a violation of your rights:

• for allegedly inappropriate conduct by a healthcare worker, no later than 15 days after the alleged violation
• for inappropriate actions by healthcare workers or healthcare associates in the provision of healthcare, no later than 30 days after the completion of treatment
• if you learned of either of the above violations later, or if the consequences of the violation became apparent later, you may file a first request no later than three months after the expiry of the deadlines stated in the previous points

In accordance with Article 58 of the Patients' Rights Act (Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia, No. 15/08), we inform you that the following competent persons have been appointed to receive and handle requests for the first consideration of a violation of patients' rights (hereinafter the first request):

A patient may file a first request no later than 15 days after the alleged violation in the case of allegedly inappropriate conduct by healthcare workers or healthcare associates, or within 30 days after the completion of healthcare in the case of allegedly inappropriate actions. The patient may file a first request within three months after the expiry of the deadlines stated in the previous sentences if they learned of the violation later, or if the consequences of the violation became apparent later.

The first request is filed with the provider's competent person or directly with an individual private doctor (Article 60 of the Patients' Rights Act). The first request, which may be submitted in writing or orally on record, contains in particular:

• the patient's full name, residential address and contact details
• a description of the alleged violation of patients' rights
• details of the healthcare workers or healthcare associates involved
• details of any other persons involved
• the time and place of the alleged violation of patients' rights
• any consequences of the alleged violation of patients' rights
• any proposal for resolving the dispute

The patient receives a copy of the record of an orally filed request. If it cannot be determined from a written request who filed it, or if the request is offensive or filed too late, the request is not considered. A written note is made of this and sent to the patient, if known. If a written request does not contain all the elements needed for its consideration, the competent person asks the patient to complete the request within a specified deadline. If the patient does not complete the request within the deadline, the request is deemed withdrawn; the patient is advised of this in the notice requesting completion.

Patients' rights advocates

Under Article 49 of the Patients' Rights Act, a patient may authorise a patients' rights advocate, who provides basic information, professional assistance and specific guidance in exercising rights in the areas of healthcare, health insurance and the provision of healthcare services.

Contact details for booking an appointment with the advocates: 041 681 304, on Tuesdays and Fridays between 8:00 and 12:00, via the contact person at NIJZ, Maribor Regional Unit.

• Quality managers: Vesna Krebs and Martin Golob
• Patient safety officer: Martin Golob