Patient Rights

As a patient, you have the right to receive considerate, respectful care at all times and under all circumstances. In addition, there are specific rights and responsibilities you have during your hospital stay. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact our Patient Relations Department.

You Have the Right to:

• Receive considerate ethical behavior and respectful care in treatments, services, and business practices. You have the right to be made comfortable and be treated with dignity.
• Be free of discrimination and exercise these rights without regard to sex, economic status, educational background, race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, citizenship, primary language, immigration status, and/or the source of payment for care.
• Have your privacy, confidentiality, and security needs respected by the organization.
• Have a family member (or other representative of your choosing) and your own physician notified promptly of your admission to the hospital.
• Know the name of the physician who has primary responsibility for coordinating your care and other care team members.
• Receive information about your health status, course of treatment, prospects for recovery, and outcomes of care, including unanticipated outcomes, in terms you can understand.
• Participate in and the organization will address your wishes regarding end-of-life care decisions.
• Make decisions regarding medical care and receive as much information about any proposed treatment or procedure based on identified health care needs, as you may need in order to give informed consent or to refuse a course of treatment.
• Be informed of continuing health care requirements following discharge from the hospital and the right to receive reasonable continuity of care.
• Request or refuse treatment, to the extent permitted by law.
• Be advised if the hospital or physician proposes to engage in or perform human experimentation affecting your care or treatment. You have the right to refuse to participate in such research projects.
• Have consent obtained for recordings or filming made for purposes other than the identification, diagnosis, or treatment.
• Receive effective communication and reasonable responses to any reasonable requests made for services.
• Receive appropriate assessment and management of your pain, information about pain, pain relief measures, and to participate in pain management decisions.
• Make an advance health care directive.
• Have personal privacy respected.
• Have confidential treatment of all communications and records pertaining to your care and stay in the hospital.
• Receive assistance for Limited English Proficient (LEP) and hearing impaired patients at no charge, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
• Access information contained in your medical record 14 days after a request has been made.
• Receive care in a safe setting, free from verbal or physical abuse or harassment.
• Know which hospital rules and policies apply to your conduct while a patient.
• Be free from restraints and seclusion of any form used as a means of coercion, discipline, convenience, or retaliation by staff.
• Designate visitors of your choosing, if you have decision-making capacity, whether or not the visitor is related by blood or marriage, unless:
  • No visitors are allowed.
  • The facility reasonably determines that the presence of a particular visitor would endanger anyone in the building or significantly disrupt the operations of the facility.
  • You have told the hospital staff that you no longer want a particular person to visit.
  • MarinHealth establishes reasonable restrictions upon visitation, including restrictions upon hours of visitation and number of visitors.
  • Have your wishes considered, if you lack decision-making capacity, for the purposes of determining who may visit.
• Examine and receive an explanation of the hospital’s bill regardless of the source of payment.
• Have complaints/concerns of yours or your representative addressed in a respectful manner, as soon as possible.
• File a grievance or complaint verbally, by phone, or in writing to a staff member, unit director, or to the Patient Relations Department. You may file a grievance or complaint with MarinHealth or any of the agencies listed below whether or not you use the hospital’s complaint/grievance process.

Medical Center Patients: Contact us by email, calling us at: 1-415-925-7366 or by completing the following form.

Medical Network Clinic Patients: Contact us by completing the following form.