Patient Rights, Safety and Quality

Our patients have the right to:

• Impartial access to treatment and care as outlined in our health system's mission statement
• Considerate, respectful care with an understanding of the spiritual, psychosocial and cultural needs that affect their response to care

• Make decisions involving their health care in collaboration with their physician; these rights include the right to accept or refuse treatment and formulate advance directives

• Information necessary to enable them to make treatment decisions that reflect their wishes such as types of treatments/procedures, potential benefits of procedures, potential drawbacks of procedures, problems related to recuperation, the likelihood of success, and alternative treatments/procedures

• Register a complaint without recrimination; have those complaints reviewed, and when possible, resolved

• Participate in any discussion of ethical issues should they arise. If consideration of ethical issues becomes necessary, the hospital will involve the patient and/or family in decision-making.

• Access to the information contained in their medical record, within the limits of the law

• Privacy and confidentiality

• Know the health care team responsible for their care

• An itemized copy of their hospital bill

• A safe environment in which to recover

• Accept or decline visitors

Our patients have a responsibility to:

• Provide accurate and complete information about past and present illnesses and hospitalizations

• Report any unexpected changes in their condition to their caregivers

• Follow their treatment plan as recommended by their health care team

• Be accountable for their actions if they refuse treatment or do not follow instructions

• Be accountable for financial obligations for their health care

• Follow the rules and regulations of our hospitals

• Be considerate of the rights of other patients and hospital staff

Patient partners are trained volunteers whose mission is to strengthen, personalize and enhance the relationship between the patient and the hospital. Patient partners provide support through communication with inpatients and family members during their hospital visit and assist with a variety of non-clinical matters.

Our patient partners are available from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday- Friday at both hospitals. To learn more about our patient partner services program, please call us at 843-520-8420.

Patients can call a patient partner directly from a bedside phone:

Tidelands Waccamaw Community Hospital - dial 21694 or 21955

Tidelands Georgetown Memorial Hospital - dial 78420