Biomaterial Database

[Demented patients' rights in institutions--the relatives' point of view]. 1998

S Teeri, and M Välimäki, and J Katajisto

The aim of this study was to describe the views of demented patients' relatives concerning the fulfillment of patients' rights in institutions. The Act on Patients' Rights and Status of March 1st, 1993, served as the basis for this study. Of the Act, the patients' rights to good care and treatment, to information and to self-determination were discussed. The data were collected from six medical wards for long-term patients at a hospital and from an old people's home by using a questionnaire. Ninety relatives of demented patients participated in the study, the response rate being 60%. The data were analyzed statistically. The relatives stated that the right to good care and treatment was realized best. The right to information was fulfilled quite well according to the respondents. The fact that the staff would not give information on their own initiative was regarded as lack of information. The right to self-determination was realized most poorly; 44% of the respondents could not say whether their relatives were able to affect the care with their opinions and wishes, and 59% could not answer whether the patient could reject the care. On the contrary, the respondents preferred their own right to influence decision-making concerning the care. Pensioners who answered the inquiry were more satisfied with the fulfillment of the patients' rights than others when the three rights were discussed. However, children as relatives were more dissatisfied than other relatives with the fulfillment of the right to information and self-determination.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D007326	Institutionalization	The caring for individuals in institutions and their adaptation to routines characteristic of the institutional environment, and/or their loss of adaptation to life outside the institution.	Institutionalized Persons,Institutionalizations,Institutionalized Person,Person, Institutionalized,Persons, Institutionalized
D008875	Middle Aged	An adult aged 45 - 64 years.	Middle Age
D010344	Patient Advocacy	Promotion and protection of the rights of patients, frequently through a legal process.	Patient Ombudsmen,Patient Representatives,Clinical Ombudsman,Patient Ombudsman,Advocacy, Patient,Ombudsman, Clinical,Ombudsman, Patient,Ombudsmen, Patient,Patient Representative,Representative, Patient,Representatives, Patient
D011795	Surveys and Questionnaires	Collections of data obtained from voluntary subjects. The information usually takes the form of answers to questions, or suggestions.	Community Survey,Nonrespondent,Questionnaire,Questionnaires,Respondent,Survey,Survey Method,Survey Methods,Surveys,Baseline Survey,Community Surveys,Methodology, Survey,Nonrespondents,Questionnaire Design,Randomized Response Technique,Repeated Rounds of Survey,Respondents,Survey Methodology,Baseline Surveys,Design, Questionnaire,Designs, Questionnaire,Methods, Survey,Questionnaire Designs,Questionnaires and Surveys,Randomized Response Techniques,Response Technique, Randomized,Response Techniques, Randomized,Survey, Baseline,Survey, Community,Surveys, Baseline,Surveys, Community,Techniques, Randomized Response
D003704	Dementia	An acquired organic mental disorder with loss of intellectual abilities of sufficient severity to interfere with social or occupational functioning. The dysfunction is multifaceted and involves memory, behavior, personality, judgment, attention, spatial relations, language, abstract thought, and other executive functions. The intellectual decline is usually progressive, and initially spares the level of consciousness.	Senile Paranoid Dementia,Amentia,Familial Dementia,Amentias,Dementia, Familial,Dementias,Dementias, Familial,Dementias, Senile Paranoid,Familial Dementias,Paranoid Dementia, Senile,Paranoid Dementias, Senile,Senile Paranoid Dementias
D005190	Family	A social group consisting of parents or parent substitutes and children.	Family Life Cycles,Family Members,Family Life Cycle,Family Research,Filiation,Kinship Networks,Relatives,Families,Family Member,Kinship Network,Life Cycle, Family,Life Cycles, Family,Network, Kinship,Networks, Kinship,Research, Family
D005387	Finland	A country in northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, and Gulf of Finland, between Sweden and Russia. The capital is Helsinki.	Aland Islands,Åland Islands
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000368	Aged	A person 65 years of age or older. For a person older than 79 years, AGED, 80 AND OVER is available.	Elderly
D000369	Aged, 80 and over	Persons 80 years of age and older.	Oldest Old