California Code of Regulations
Title 22 - Social Security
Division 5 - Licensing and Certification of Health Facilities, Home Health Agencies, Clinics, and Referral Agencies
Chapter 2 - Acute Psychiatric Hospital
Article 6 - Administration
Section 71507 - Patients' Rights

Universal Citation: 22 CA Code of Regs 71507

Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 38, September 20, 2024

(a) All patients shall have rights which include, but are not limited to the following:

(1) To wear his or her own clothes, to keep and use his or her own personal possessions including his or her toilet articles; and to keep and be allowed to spend a reasonable sum of his or her own money for canteen expenses and small purchases.

(2) To have access to individual storage space for his or her private use.

(3) To see visitors each day.

(4) To have reasonable access to telephones, both to make and receive confidential calls.

(5) To have ready access to letter writing materials, including stamps, and to mail and receive unopened correspondence.

(6) To refuse shock treatment.

(7) To refuse psychosurgery as defined in Section 5325, Welfare and Institutions Code.

(8) To be informed of the provisions of law regarding complaints and of procedures for registering complaints confidentially, including but not limited to, the address and telephone number of the complaint receiving unit of the Department.

(9) To be free from discrimination based on sex, race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, sexual orientation, disability, medical condition, marital status, or registered domestic partner status.

(10) All other rights as provided by law or regulation.

(b) The licensed healthcare practitioner acting within the scope of his or her professional licensure who has overall responsibility for the service, or his or her designee, may for good cause, deny a person any of the rights specified in (a) above, except those rights specified in subsection (7) and (9) above and the rights under subsection (6) may be denied only under the conditions specified in Section 5326.7, Welfare and Institutions Code. The denial, and the reasons therefore, shall be entered in the patient's medical record.

(c) These rights, written in English and Spanish, shall be prominently posted.

(d) There shall be a procedure established whereby patient complaints are forwarded to hospital administration. Knowledge of this procedure shall be readily available to patients. The hospital administration shall, in all cases, acknowledge to the patient their receipt of his or her complaint. Additional follow-up of the complaint and response to the patient shall be handled as is appropriate.

1. Editorial correction of subsection (b) (Register 80, No. 40).
2. Amendment of subsection (b) and NOTE filed 3-3-2010; operative 4-2-2010 (Register 2010, No. 10).
3. Change without regulatory effect amending subsections (a)(1) and (a)(2), adopting subsection (a)(9), renumbering subsections and amending subsection (d) and NOTE filed 6-23-2011 pursuant to section 100, title 1, California Code of Regulations (Register 2011, No. 25).

Note: Authority cited: Sections 1275 and 131200, Health and Safety Code. Reference: Section 51, Civil Code; Sections 297 and 297.5, Family Code; and Sections 1276, 1316.5, 131050, 131051 and 131052, Health and Safety Code.

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