Patients & Family

Rights and Responsibilities for Patients, Families and Staff

You may be asked to sign a consent form for certain tests, procedures and treatments. Before signing, make sure you know and understand the benefits and risks. This is called informed consent. If you have any questions or would like additional information before signing, talk to your doctor. You have the right to refuse treatment.

You have the responsibility to disclose all symptoms and changes in your condition to your caregivers and to follow their instructions regarding treatment.

Please appoint a family spokesperson. This person can take on the task of calling the nursing station for information and passing news on to the rest of the family. Appointing one spokesperson helps the family communicate clearly and easily with one another, and gives the nursing staff more time to work with their patients.

You are also urged to consider advanced directives. The Ontario government has passed consent legislation designed to enhance the patient’s right to make informed choices on health, finance and personal care matters.

          1. Substitute decision-maker - a person who is authorized to make treatment decisions on behalf of an incapable person.

          2. Power of Attorney - the document used to name in advance your substitute decision-maker.

          3. Living Will - a statement of your wishes regarding life-sustaining treatment.

The legislation stresses that a person must clearly understand treatment and the related risks of the treatment. It sets out a sequence of persons to contact if the patient is unable to make a treatment decision and no substitute decision-maker is named.

If you have any documentation about your wishes, such as a Living Will, please provide a copy to your caregiver for your chart.

To enhance your hospital experience, we offer a Preferred Accommodation Program which applies only to private* or semi-private rooms*. These rooms offer additional privacy, convenience and include premium cable TV service in the cost of the room.

Please understand that although the Admitting Department will try to satisfy all requests, the room accommodation you may prefer may not always be available.

This program applies only to paid private and semi-private rooms. Therefore, if you are placed in a ward room and choose Hospitality Network’s television rental services, you will be required to pay for your rental service. As well, if you are placed in a private or semi-private room due to medical necessity as determined

by your attending physician, and choose Hospitality Network’s rental services, you would be required to pay for your television rental service.

Please check with your health insurer about level of hospital care coverage (acute, rehab, chronic). You may not qualify for Preferred Accommodation based on the level.

If you have any questions about your inpatient room accommodation, please telephone Admitting at 519-352-6401 ext. 6005. Please contact Hospitality Network regarding Hospitality Network rental services at 1-800-387-8223.

* where available