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VOLUME 20, NUMBER 25,
JUNE 22, 1973
DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA
Group Will Visit England
To Examine Health System
GfiADUATFS-Clyde Buchanan, assistant director of pharmacy, (at right) presents
David Holeman with a certificate to record the latter's successful completion of a
six-month pharmacy technician training program. The young ladies pictured are also
graduates of the program, and they are, from left; Zandra Satterfield, Linda Phillips
and Mickey Alford. fPhoto by Lewis Parrish)
After a quarter of a century of
experience with its National Health
System-sometimes called socialized
medicine—what lessons can the British
pass on to us as we anticipate some form
of national health insurance?
That's what a 22-member
group —including five with ties to
Duke—will try to determine during a
study visit to England and Scotland next
week.
In the group will be Dr. William G.
Aniyan, vice president for health affairs;
Dr. Daniel Tosteson, cliairman of the
Department ; r Physiology and
Pharmacol'gy and chairman-elect of the
Associi'iJon of American Medical
Coliegis; and Dr. Ruby Wilson, dean of
the School of Nursing,
Also taking part will be J. Alexander
McMahon, president of the American
Hospital Association and chairman of the
Duke University Board of Trustees, and
Dr. John A. D. Cooper, president of the
Association of American Medical Colleges
and a member of the Duke Medical
Brochure Lists Patient 'Rights’
To say that one person has a right to something implies that
someone else has an obligation and responsibility to support
that right.
This is specifically the case as it applies to patients at Duke
and to those of us who work here.
A newly prepared statement called "Your Rights as a Patient
at Duke University Medical Center" lists in detail specific
conditions a patient can expect to be met while he or she is
under medical care at Duke.
The statement is contained in a brochure prepared by the
Committee on Patient Services and Personnel Relations and
affirmed by the Hospital Advisory Committee. The patient's
rights statement is an outgrowth of the Quail Roost Conference
on Patient Services and Personnel Relations in February.
Over the past week, copies of the brochure have been
distributed to personnel throughout the medical center, and the
brochure is now being made available to patients.
Here is the text of "Your Rights as a Patient at Duke
University Medical Center:"
Welcome to Duke University Medical Center! The entire staff
is committed to providing you excellence in patient care in as
efficient, yet personal, sympathetic, and dignified a manner as
possible. We wish you to be aware of the principles which guide
each of us in our efforts to relieve you of your discomfort and
to help you recover from your illness.
You should know by name and be able to identify your
physician and his associates, who will be responsible for your
care. This physician, or his designate, will help you understand
your medical problem and will keep you informed concerning
the necessity for-and the results of-diagnostic procedures,
consultations and treatment. Such diagnostic and therapeutic
measures will be performeq) only with your approval and after
any questions in your mind have been resolved. Your right to
refuse any procedure or treatment -after you have been
informed of the possible consequences of such a decision—is
recognized by all members of the professional staff and will be
accepted without question.
Prior to your discharge from the hospital you may expect
that your physician will explain to you and your family the
nature of your illness and the treatment prescribed. Adequate
time will be allowed to discuss your illness in a manner which
you can understand and to answer any questions you feel are
appropriate. Likewise, it will be the responsibility of your
physician to arrange for your continuing medical care following
your discharge, either at Duke or by your family physician, and
to communicate promptly with any physician responsible for
your medical needs following your release.
All medical center personnel are obliged to respect your
privacy. Any examinations or conversations with your
physician, as well as your medical record, will be kept in strict
confidence. You will come into contact with physicians, nurses
and allied health personnel in training, but this should not
violate your confidence or privacy. It is, of course, your
prerogative to refuse to be observed by any person or group
other than those directly responsible for your care. You should
know, however, that we believe that the quality of medical care
is enhanced by your involvement in the training of health
professionals, and that it is to your advantage to have your case
reviewed by individuals at all levels of medical experience at this
institution.
Your welfare is the personal responsibility of every employee
of Duke University Medical Center. We have been trained to
provide you with not only the best in professional medical care
but also with familiar comforts such as well prepared and
promptly served food, a pleasant and congenial atmosphere,
respect for personal privacy and dignity, a neat and clean room,
quiet and uncluttered halls, and a prompt response to your
request for attention and assistance.
If you feel that Duke University Medical Center has not met
these standards, we would like the opportunity to take
corrective action. If possible, discuss the matter first with your
physician. If this approach is not feasible or proves unsuccessful,
please call the Hospital Director's Office (telephone extension
6717) between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.; your
complaint or problem will be thoroughly investigated and an
attempt made to resolve it to your satisfaction. A telephone will
be provided during your hospitalization or you may call after
your discharge from the hospital.
Several weeks following your discharge, you may receive a
questionnaire concerning the care you received at Duke
University Medical Center. We would sincerely appreciate your
completing this questionnaire and returning it so that we may
constantly improve our standard of patient service.
It is our sincere hope that youi stay at Duke University
Medical Center will be a pleasant one, and that we will be
instrumental in your prompt recovery.
Center's Board of Visitors.
Aniyan said the main purpose of the
trip will be to examine the impact of the
National Health System on medical and
nursing education and the distribution of
health services.
He said a better acquaintance with
Britain's 25-year experience is
particularly important because of the
expectation that the United States will
adopt a system of national health
insurance sometime in the next four to
(Continued on page 2)
Alfred Grzelecki
To Leave Duke
Al Grzelecki, assistant director of
Duke Hospital, wilt become assistant
administrator of St. Margaret Hospital in
Hammond, Ind., on July 1.
St. Margaret is a 521-bed community
hospital in northwestern Indiana.
"My long-term objective in hospital
administration has always been to be
involved in a community hospital
environment, and that is specifically what
this opportunity at St. Margaret will
provide," Grzelecki said.
A 1967 graduate of Duke's Graduate
Program in Hospital Administration,
Grzelecki returned to Duke in the fall of
1971 as an assistant director. He has been
the hospital's administrative link with
central supply, dietetics, the equipment
room, pharmacy, purchasing and stores,
the psychiatric and medical inpatient
units and outpatient clinics and the Drake
Pavilion.
Grzelecki is a native of Schnectady,
N.Y., and earned a B.A. degree in
economics at Colby College in Waterville,
Me., in 1965. After earning his master's
degree at Duke, he served for four years
with the U.S. Air Force Medical Service
Corps in Madrid, Spain.
Grzelecki, his wife, Margaret, and their
2y2-year-old daughter, Ann Sheaffer, will
be living in Griffith, Indiana.
ALFRED GRZELECKI