The World Confederation for Physical Therapy (WCPT) promotes:
- the respect of the patients’/clients’ dignity, integrity and self-determination
- the protection of the legal status of the patient/client in connection with the health system and the physical therapist in particular
- a relationship of confidence and reliance between the patient/client and the physical therapist
This declaration must be interpreted within the context of national laws and regulations and professional standards of practice. Physical therapists should also be aware of relevant international declarations and national laws in areas such as human rights, equal opportunity, racial and gender discrimination, privacy, freedom of information, workplace accidents and injuries.
This declaration represents some of the principal rights of patients/clients, which the profession of physical therapy endorses and promotes.
Principles
- Patients’/Clients’ Right to Physical Therapy Services of Good Quality
1.1 Every patient /client has the right to:
- appropriate physical therapy services without discrimination
- the services of a physical therapist who is free to make clinical and ethical judgements without any outside interference
- the services of a physical therapist who is free to exercise professional judgement according to his/her education and experience
- ask for a second opinion of another physical therapist at any stage
- the right to be treated in accordance with his/her best interests
- choose freely and change his/her physical therapist or health service institution, regardless of whether they are based in the private or public sector
- advocacy if he/she is unable to speak on his/her own behalf
- Patients’/Clients’ Right to Information
2.1 Every patient/client has the right to:
- adequate information upon which to base the decision to consent or refuse examination/assessment and intervention/treatment
- decline examination/assessment and intervention/treatment at any stage without it prejudicing future management
- receive information about himself/herself recorded in his/her health records and about practice policies, charges for services, physical therapy goals, desired outcomes and procedures which are being rendered
- choose who, if anyone, should be informed on his/her behalf
- discuss the physical therapy intervention/treatment options, including information about significant benefits, risks and side effects
- receive information in a way that is comprehensible and appropriate to the patient’s/client’s values and cultural and religious beliefs
- receive information about complaints procedures
- complain and to have the complaint managed sensitively
- Patients’/Clients’ Right to Informed Consent
3.1 Every patient/client has the right to:
- provide or withhold informed consent for the type and nature of physical therapy to be provided
- know the purpose of any examination or intervention/treatment
- any risk associated with the proposed intervention/treatment
- the expected benefit of the intervention/treatment
- reasonable alternatives to the proposed intervention/treatment
- the implications of withholding consent
- self-determination including participation in decisions about the physical therapy interventions
- make free decisions regarding himself/herself with knowledge of the consequences of his/her decisions
- Patients’/Clients’ Right to Confidentiality
4.1 Every patient/client has the right to:
- confidentiality of any information (e.g., health status, diagnosis, prognosis, interventions/treatment, any other personal information) obtained from him/her unless explicit consent is given or expressly provided for in law
- Patients’/Clients’ Right to Access to Data
5.1 Every patient/client has the right to:
- have access to all information kept by the physical therapist relating to them
- be notified when their physical therapy data are transmitted to a data bank
- have incorrect data corrected or destroyed
- Patients’/Clients’ Right to Health Education
6.1 Every patient/client has the right to:
- health education that will assist him/her in making informed choices about personal health and about the available health services
- continuity of health services
- Patients’/Clients’ Right to Dignity
7.1 Every patient/client has the right to:
- be managed with dignity
- be treated courteously
- privacy that shall be respected at all times in all physical therapy services
- have his/her culture, values and religious beliefs respected
- die with dignity
- humane terminal care
Acknowledgements: In developing this document, WCPT consulted various documents from other regional international organisations in particular:
World Medical Association Declaration on the Rights of the Patient
[Adopted by the 34th World Medical Assembly, Lisbon, Portugal, September/October 1981, and amended by the 47th WMA General Assembly, Bali, Indonesia, September 1995, and editorially revised at the 171st Council Session, Santiago, Chile, October 2005 http://www.wma.net/e/policy/l4.htm ]
