(773) 626-4300
645 South Central Avenue, Chicago, IL 60644
773-626-4300

Your Rights as a Patient

You Have a Right to Quality Healthcare

At Loretto Hospital, our goal is to make your visit as pleasant as possible. We recognize and are committed to your individual rights as a patient. Patients, or their designated representative, are involved in decisions regarding the care that we deliver to the extent this is practical and possible. We seek to inform you about options to care and risks associated with the care you seek. We will constantly try to understand and respect your objectives for care. We hope the mutual understanding of these rights and responsibilities will contribute to the best possible patient care and satisfaction. By understanding your rights and responsibilities, you can help us, help you.

Patients’ Rights & Responsibilities

As a patient at Loretto Hospital, you have the right to:

  • The right to reasonable access to care, and care that is considerate and respectful of your personal values and beliefs in an environment that is respectful, courteous, and preserves your dignity
  • The right to participate in the development and implementation of his or her plan of care
    • Participate in the development and implementation of his/her inpatient treatment/care plan,
    • Outpatient treatment / care plan
    • Participate in the development and implementation of his/her discharge plan
    • Participate in the development and implementation of his/her pain management plan.
  • The right to formulate advance directives and to have hospital staff and practitioners who provide care in the hospital comply with these directives.
  • The right to have a family member or representative of his or her choice and his or her own physician notified promptly of his or her admission to the hospital
  • The right to personal privacy, the underlying principle of this requirement is the patient’s basic right to respect, dignity, and comfort while in the hospital.
  • The right to receive care in a safe setting, the right to be free from harassment or all forms of abuse, mental, physical, sexual and verbal abuse, neglect and exploitation.
  • The right to the confidentiality of his or her clinical records
  • The right to access information contained in his or her clinical records within a reasonable time frame. The hospital must not frustrate the legitimate efforts of individuals to gain access to their own medical records and must actively seek to meet these requests as quickly as its record keeping system permits.
  • The right to be free from restraints of any form that are not medically necessary or are used as a means of coercion, discipline, convenience, or retaliation by staff
  • The right to be fully informed of and to consent or refuse to participate in any unusual, experimental or research project without compromising his/her access to services
  • The right to know the professional status of any person providing his/her care/services
  • The right to know the reasons for any proposed change in the professional staff responsible for his/her care
  • The right to know the reasons for his/her transfer either within or outside the hospital
  • The right to know the relationship(s) of the hospital to other persons or organizations participating in the provision of his/her care
  • The right of access to the cost, itemized when possible, of services rendered within a reasonable period of time
  • The right to be informed of the source of the hospital’s reimbursement for his/her services, and of any limitations which may be placed upon his/her care
  • The right to be informed of the right to have pain treated as effectively as possible
  • The right to visitation,
    • Right to know if any clinical restriction or limitation on visitation rights
    • Right to subject to his or her consent, to receive the visitors whom he or she designates, including, but not limited to, a spouse, a domestic partner (including a same sex domestic partner), another family member, or a friend, and his or her right to withdraw or deny such consent at any time.
    • Right to not restrict, limit or otherwise deny visitation privileges on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, or disability.
    • Right to ensure that all visitors enjoy full and equal visitation privileges consistent with patient preferences.
  • The patient's family has the right of informed consent for donation of organs and tissues.
  • Information about the hospital’s process for the initiation, review and resolution of patient grievances. (To file a complaint or grievance that cannot be immediately resolved, contact the Patient Experience Officer through the operator or by phone at 773- 854-5064.)

As a patient at Loretto Hospital, you have the responsibility to:

  • Provide accurate and complete information, to the best of your knowledge, concerning your present and past illnesses, hospitalizations, medications and other information relating to your health
  • Ask questions if you do not clearly understand information and instructions about your treatment and care
  • Follow the instructions and treatment plan coordinated by your physician
  • Be considerate and respectful to our caregivers, other patients, and visitors to the hospital
  • Present to the hospital a copy of your Living Will or Power of Attorney for Healthcare so that your Advanced Directives can be honored
  • Be responsible for your own actions if you refuse treatment or refuse to follow your treatment instructions
  • Cooperate in your discharge planning
  • Report changes in your condition to those responsible for your care
  • Honor the confidentiality and privacy of other patients
  • Follow hospital rules and regulations
  • Ensure that payment for your care is made promptly and in full. This means understanding your insurance coverage and its limits, and any added responsibilities you may have.
  • Comply with this policy by respecting patient's rights and reinforcing patient's responsibilities

Patient Advocate is available to help you with any problems or concerns you might have. Your comments will be reviewed, and the appropriate actions will be taken. To speak with Patient Relations, call 773-854-5064 or patient.experience@lorettohospital.org. Alternatively, if we are unable to address your complaint/grievance, you may directly reach out to Livanta. Livanta is the CMS Beneficiary and Family Centered Care Quality Improvement Organization (BFCC-QIO) for Illinois. You can contact Livanta at: Helpline: (888) 524 - 9900 TTY: (888) 985 - 8775 Fax: (855) 236-2423

Patient Rights & Responsibilities in English

Derechos y responsabilidades de los pacientes in Espanol

Loretto Hospital Notice of Privacy Practices

This notice describes how we may use and disclose protected health information about you. Protected health information means any health information that could be used to identify you. In this notice, we refer to all of that protected health information as “PHI.” This notice also describes your rights and our duties with respect to your PHI. In addition, it tells you how to complain to us if you believe we have violated your privacy rights.

We are committed to the protection of PHI in accordance with applicable laws and accreditation standards regarding patient privacy. Your PHI is personal. A record of the care and services you receive at our facility is needed to provide you with quality care and to comply with legal requirements. The law requires us to make sure that your PHI is kept private. The law also requires us to provide a copy of this notice which explains our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to your PHI, and to follow the terms of this notice currently in effect.

You may read Loretto Hospital’s full Notice of Privacy Practices below:

Patient Complaint

If you have questions or concerns about Loretto Hospital’s quality of care or safety, please call or text 312.859.6959 or email tanesha.daniels@lorettohspital.org.

Illinois Hospital Report Card Act

As an Illinois consumer, you have a right to access information about the quality of health care provided in the State of Illinois. In response to the “Hospital Report Card Act” (HRCA), Loretto Hospital is hereby notifying the public of its right to access information on quality and safety data, nurse staffing, patient satisfaction and costs of services at hospitals and surgery centers in Illinois. This information can be obtained upon written request by contacting the Chief Nursing Officer at 773.854.5305.

Click here to learn more about the Illinois Hospital Report Card Act.

Right to An Interpreter

Health care facilities have a responsibility under federal law to be accessible to deaf and hard of hearing, as well as non-English speaking individuals. The Loretto Hospital values the diversity of its patient base. In order to meet the widespread need of the Austin and surrounding communities, and to support our patients and their families, upon request we provide foreign and sign language interpreters as well as other auxiliary aids to patients. These services are provided at no additional cost to our patients.