Health Systems in Transition - Hungary - World Health Organization ...

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Health systems in transition Hungary
2.9 Patient empowerment
2.9.1 Patient information
Act CLIV of 1997 on Health made a systematic and elaborated move to
address patient information, specifying in detail rights that were previously
incorporated in the legal obligation of medical professionals or that could be
deduced from judicial practice (Sándor, 1997) (1997/20). According to the Act,
patients have the right to complete and detailed information from health care
providers, particularly on their health status; on the recommended interventions
with the alternatives, including clarifying the possible benefits and drawbacks;
and on the decision rights of the patients regarding treatment. This should
be done by the provider in understandable way, taking into account the age,
schooling and mental capability of the patient, and ensuring a translator is
provided if necessary. Also, the patient can refuse to be informed, although
the precondition for any medical intervention is that the patient should be
properly informed and give prior consent to the intervention in written form or
as implied through their conduct.
Moreover, the Act stipulates that patient documentation should be carefully
maintained by the medical provider, while giving the right of disposal of the
data in the documentation to the patients – who have the right to read and
obtain a copy of the documentation at their own expense – and guaranteeing the
right to privacy (1997/20). To provide patients and the wider public with health
information in meaningful way has taken effective form with the establishment
of a web and call centre-based health information source for both patients and
health professionals, but there are only few health promotion programmes that
are aimed at increasing the health literacy of the population. Unfortunately,
there is no systematic assessment of the accessibility and the usefulness of the
available information, as well as to what extent the population has clear sense
of the benefits to which they are entitled.
2.9.2 Patient choice
Since the HIF operates as single statutory structure at the national level, there is
no competition between purchaser organizations. However, Act CLIV of 1997
on Health acknowledges and emphasizes the right of patient autonomy through
which patients have, first of all, the freedom to decide whether they accept or
refuse certain medical services (1997/20).