Patient Rights: Meaning in Lay’s Perspective under Local Culture Context

Abstract

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to examine the meaning of villagers on patients’ rights under the context of folk culture. Materials and Method: The study used both quantitative and qualitative. In the quantitative study, a questionnaire was used to collect data from 84 participants.  For the qualitative study, in-depth interview were used to elicit data form 24 key informants. These data were conducted during February 1 - May 2013. The percentage and average was used to analyze quantitative data. The content analysis was used to analyze qualitative data.Results: For quantitative study, most of the respondents were female (78.31 %). They were an elderly with age more than over 50 years (69.88 %) and married (68.67%). All respondent were Buddhists .They graduated on primary education (85.54%), had average income less than 4,000 baht (62.65%). They were farmers as: fishing and farming (68.68%). The result showed that the 80 villagers (95.24%) do not know and do not understand the meaning of the patients' rights.  But they need to have the services as: “Best treatment, good care from specialist doctors who provide information about treatment and prescribed the best medicine.” These requirements were beneath the local cultures context which believes that illness is a matter of fate, physicians as an angel can help them from illness, physicians were a patron. Then these requirements were not demand, not the use of their right, they asked for help.Conclusion: The villagers do not know and do not understand the meaning of the patients' rights.  But they need to have best practice and received good care. For the patient centered care, healthcare providers need to learn and understand the need for the patients’ right in the perspective of villagers under the context of local culture.