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Visiting Cincinnati Children's

Your Rights and Responsibilities

Respect for individual dignity is fundamental to Cincinnati Children’s. We respect the rights and responsibilities of our patients and their families.
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+ Patients and parents / guardians have the right:

To have a family member or representative of your choice and the patient’s physician notified promptly of the patient’s admission to the hospital;
To be treated considerately and respectfully regardless of the patient and/or family's race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, cultural background, economic status, education or illness;
To know the names of your child’s physicians and nurses and the role they play in your child’s care;
To be told by the physician, in words you can understand, about your child’s illness, treatment and prospects for recovery;
To receive as much information as you need in order to give or refuse consent for any proposed treatment;
To have an active role in decisions about your child’s medical care, including the development and implementation of the care plan, which shall include the management of pain as appropriate;
To make an informed decision regarding care including, to the extent allowed by law, the refusal of care;
To privacy in medical care and treatment; this includes the right to be informed why individuals who are not directly involved in your child’s care are present when your child is being treated or discussed and personal privacy in general;
To receive care in a safe setting, free from all forms of abuse or harassment;
To confidential treatment of all communications and records regarding care received at Cincinnati Children’s; to access information in the medical record in a reasonable time frame pursuant to Cincinnati Children’s policy and procedure;
To be aware and informed if Cincinnati Children’s feels that legal action is necessary to provide treatment for your child;
To receive a clear explanation of the outcome of any treatments or procedures where the outcomes differ significantly from the anticipated outcomes;
To expect a response to any reasonable request for help in meeting special needs;
To remove your child from the hospital even when the physicians advise you not to, to the extent permitted by law; if you choose to remove your child from the hospital, you will be required to sign a form that relieves Cincinnati Children’s of responsibility for your child’s welfare;
To know about any connections between Cincinnati Children’s and other institutions, as far as your child’s care is concerned;
To consent or refuse to participate in any research project;
To know your child’s continuing healthcare needs after discharge from the hospital or outpatient service;
To know the charges for services provided, to examine your medical care bills and to receive an explanation of charges.

+ Patients and parents / guardians have the responsibility:

To provide, to the best of your knowledge, accurate and complete information about all matters relating to your child’s health;
To the extent allowed by law, to both formulate advance directives and expect the hospital staff and practitioners who provide care will comply with these directives;
To be considerate of other patients and staff and to encourage your child’s visitors to be considerate as well;
To pay for services provided, and/or to provide necessary information to process insurance claims related to your child’s hospital and outpatient service bills, and to plan for payment of your child’s healthcare bills as soon as possible;
To discuss with a financial counselor the possibility of financial aid to help in the payment of your child’s hospital and outpatient bills in cases of financial hardship (contact our financial counselor at 513-636-0201);
To follow the treatment plan recommended by the practitioner and agreed upon for your child’s care;
To follow Cincinnati Children’s policies and procedures concerning patient care and conduct;
To seek information, to the extent possible, from healthcare providers by asking any questions necessary to reach an understanding of your child’s health problem(s) and the treatment plan developed by you and the practitioner.

+ Concern or Grievance

If you have a concern or grievance that cannot be immediately addressed by your care team, you may contact:
Our Family Relations Department at 513-636-4700 or advocates@cchmc.org
The Ohio Department of Health at 1-800-342-0553 or hccomplaints@odh.ohio.gov
The Joint Commission, the organization that accredits hospitals nationwide, at www.jointcommission.org
Medicare beneficiaries have the right to request a review of their grievances by Ohio’s Quality Improvement Organization. Medicare patients may make this request through Family Relations or by calling the Ohio Medicare Beneficiary helpline at 1-800-589-7337 or www.ohiokepro.com.

Family Relations

Contact Family Relations to speak to a patient advocate:
Phone: 513-636-4700
Email: advocates@cchmc.org
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3333 Burnet Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio 45229-3026 | 1-513-636-4200 | 1-800-344-2462 | TTY:1-513-636-4900

New to Cincinnati Children’s or live outside of the tri-state area? 1-877-881-8479

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