Many people talk about their rights. There is the right to life, the right to a free trial, the right to marry and start a family, just to name a few from the Human Rights Act. Then there are the cliché ones like the right to remain silent, so often heard in cop shows or at home when we don’t want to admit to something.
What people don’t often think about is that with rights come responsibilities. For instance we have the right to free speech, but laws that prevent the incitement of racial hatred could be seen as an implicit duty to not abuse the right to free speech.
These rights and responsibilities are often enshrined in laws which differ from country to country depending on their constitution. However countries are not the only ones to have constitutions, our very own NHS has one too.
The NHS constitution sets out the principles and values of the NHS in England. It includes the rights not just for patients but for staff and the public too, as well as pledges that the NHS are committed to achieve, and the responsibilities which the public, patients and staff all owe each other to make sure that the NHS can meet the needs of everyone involved.
Pledges are a commitment to achieve over and above the duties, but are not legally binding. For instance we have the right to receive NHS services that are appropriate, meets our needs, and reflects our preferences, free of charge. To fulfil those rights the NHS pledges to provide convenient access to services within the waiting times set out, make decisions in a clear and transparent way, and make the transition as smooth as possible when referred between services, as well as putting us and our family and carers at the centre of the decisions that affect us.
Patients don’t have blanket rights to demand things, they have to be reasonable. For instance we have the right to drugs and treatments, but only those recommended by NICE, if the doctors says they are clinically appropriate. We have the right to choose our GP practice and to express a preference for using a particular doctor within the practice, and the practice has to try to comply if possible.
The NHS constitution is not just one sided, applying only to the NHS. The NHS belongs to all of us, and the patients and the public have responsibilities too. As patients we have to take personal responsibility for our own health.
- We are expected to treat NHS staff and other patients with respect.
- We should provide accurate information about our health, condition and status.
- We should keep appointments or cancel if we can’t attend them.
- We should follow any treatment we are given and discuss it with our clinician if we find this too difficult.
- We should participate in public health programmes and make our loved ones aware of our wishes about organ donation.
- Lastly, we need to give feedback, not just about our experiences of the service, but also including things like adverse reactions to any treatments we have had.
Regardless as to rights and responsibilities, the NHS belongs to us all and we all have to work together to make sure that we have the best possible healthcare.
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