In Finland, social welfare and health care clients and patients are protected by two pieces of interrelated legislation:
The Act on the Status and Rights of Patients 785/1992 (Finlex)
- The Act on the Status and Rights of Social Welfare Clients
These define the legal principles according to which clients and patients must be treated when using health and social services.
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Rights
| Patients and social welfare clients are
entitled to receive an
appropriate and good quality social and
health care service. Care and treatment options must be
explained straightforwardly and clearly.
Patients and clients must be treated in such a way that their dignity, beliefs and privacy are not violated. |
|
Availability
|
People needing social and health services are entitled to receive the within statutory timeframes.
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Confidentiality
|
Social and health care records and the information they contain are confidential. Patients and social welfare clients are entitled to know what their data is used for. |
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Complaints or legal protection for patients and social welfare clients |
If patients or social welfare clients are dissatisfied
with the service they receive, they may
Social welfare clients may also seek a change of
decision concerning their case.
The MSAH does not handle complaints or objections, which are instead dealt with by the relevant municipalities or
Regional State Administrative
Agencies
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Patient Ombudsman and Social Ombudsman |
If patients or social service clients feel that they have been treated badly when they go for social and health care services or that they need advice on the rights, they can go over the matter with a patient ombudsman or social ombudsman. |
