The rights of minor patients are insufficiently protected

When providing health care, doctors in Slovakia often and unjustifiably deny the patient the participation of an accompanying person. This is pointed out by representatives of the Freedom and Solidarity party Vladimíra Marcinková and Vladimír Ledecký. According to them, it becomes noticeable especially with minor children and persons without a legal representative.

“The Act on Health Care regulates the right of these patients to the continuous presence of an accompanying person during the provision of health care insufficiently, non-explicitly, and there is no clear and uncontroversial anchoring of this right,” said SaS MPs. According to them, the Office of the Public Defender of Rights and the Association for the Protection of Patients’ Rights continuously draw attention to the insufficient protection of the rights of minor patients in connection with the right to an accompanying person.

From March next year, the liberals therefore propose to guarantee a minor child the right to the continuous presence of a parent, a person designated by the parent, another person to whom the minor child has been entrusted or a guardian during the provision of health care. The attending physician could limit the presence of such a person to the necessary extent and for the necessary time if it would be incompatible with the nature of the provided medical service. This follows from the draft amendment to the Act on Health Care, which deputies Vladimíra Marcinková and Vladimír Ledecký submitted to the parliament.