The right to he alth protection in Poland results from Art. 68 sec. 1 of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland. All patient rights in Poland are the result of this provision. Moreover, the patient's right in Poland is conditioned by the presence of a number of laws and regulations.
Patient rightsin Poland are guaranteed by the constitution and laws, the most important of which include:
- of the Act on patient's rights and the Patient's Rights Ombudsman (Journal of Laws of 2012, item 159)
- of the Mental He alth Protection Act (Journal of Laws of 2011, No. 231, item 1375, as amended)
- Act on he alth care benefits financed from public funds (Journal of Laws of 2008, No. 164, item 1027, as amended)
Patient rights: right to he alth benefits
He alth services in Poland must always meet the requirements of medical knowledge, based on the available methods and means of preventing, diagnosing and treating diseases. They should be performed by doctors, dentists, nurses, midwives, laboratory diagnosticians with due diligence and in accordance with the principles of professional ethics, and in the event of limited opportunities to provide appropriate services - to use a reliable, based on medical criteria, open procedure determining the order of access to services. In addition, every patient in Poland has the right to immediate medical assistance in he althcare facilities due to the threat to the he alth or life of the patient.
Patient rights: right to object
Moreover, every patient has the right to object to a doctor's opinion or decision. This regulation can be found in Art. 31-32 of the Act on Patient Rights and the Patient's Rights Ombudsman. It follows that each patient or his legal representative may object to the opinion or decision of a doctor if they affect the patient's rights or obligations under the law. Pursuant to the Act on the Professions of Physicians and Dentists, practicing the profession also includes issuing medical opinions and certificates by a person with the required qualifications, confirmed by relevant documents.
The right to object does not include medical opinions or decisions, in the case of which there is a different legal appeal procedure, as in the case of decisions related to the Social Insurance Institution, ruling ondisability, occupational medicine decisions or medical diagnoses. The objection shall be submitted to the Medical Commission operating at the Patient's Rights Ombudsman, via the Ombudsman, within 30 days from the date of the opinion or decision by the doctor adjudicating on the patient's he alth condition. The Medical Commission, on the basis of medical records and, if necessary, after examining the patient, issues a decision immediately, no later than within 30 days from the date of the objection being raised. The Medical Commission is composed of three doctors appointed by the Patients' Rights Ombudsman, including two of the same speci alty as the doctor who issued the opinion or decision. The Medical Commission adjudicates on the basis of a detailed analysis of the patient's medical records and, if it deems it necessary, after examining the patient. The provisions of the Code of Administrative Procedure do not apply to the proceedings before the Medical Board. Thus, the decision is final and cannot be appealed against to a higher authority
Patient rights: special rights
Special rights are granted to beneficiaries due to war disability, invalidity acquired by veterans and repressed persons, as well as blood donors holding a "Meritorious Honorary Blood Donor" and transplant donors, having a "Distinguished Transplant Donor". Basic drugs, complementary drugs and prescription drugs are issued to the recipient on the basis of a prescription, against payment:
1) lump sum - for basic and prescription medicines prepared from pharmaceutical raw materials, provided that the prescribed dose of the prescription medicine is lower than the smallest dose of the finished medicine in a solid form used orally;
2) in the amount of 30 percent or 50 percent of the drug price - for complementary drugs.
War invalids and repressed persons, their spouses who are solely dependent on them, as well as widows and widowers of fallen soldiers and deceased war invalids and repressed persons, en titled to survivors' pensions, are en titled to a free supply of medicines marked with the symbols "Rp" or " Rpz ", admitted to trading on the territory of the Republic of Poland.
In the field of primary care, patients should be provided services each time they see a doctor. Thus, in the event of his absence, the medical facility is obliged to establish a replacement.