patient

medicine

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Last updated

July 23, 2026

Quick Summary

A patient is an individual receiving or awaiting medical care and treatment. This care can range from outpatient services to extended stays in facilities like hospitals. Modern healthcare systems offer various levels of care, including intensive care, intermediate care, self-care, long-term care, and organized home care.123

Patients have fundamental rights, including the right to informed consent, which means they must receive clear information about proposed treatments, their risks, benefits, and alternatives before agreeing to them. These rights ensure patients can participate in decisions about their healthcare and promote self-determination.4

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bioethics
The health care context
…the relationship between doctor and patient, including issues that arise from conflicts between a doctor’s duty to promote the health of his patient and the patient’s right to self-determination or autonomy, a right that in the medical context is usually taken to encompass a right to be fully informed about…
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…the relationship between doctor and patient, including issues that arise from conflicts between a doctor’s duty to promote the health of his patient and the patient’s right to self-determination or autonomy, a right that in the medical context is usually taken to encompass a right to be fully informed about…
Read More

therapeutics
Indications for use
Patients are advised to inform their physicians of any new drugs they are taking, as well as consult with the pharmacist about possible interactions that a nonprescription drug might have with a prescription drug already being taken. Having a personal physician who monitors all the…
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Patients are advised to inform their physicians of any new drugs they are taking, as well as consult with the pharmacist about possible interactions that a nonprescription drug might have with a prescription drug already being taken. Having a personal physician who monitors all the…
Read More

therapeutics
Designing a therapeutic regimen
…to be considered is the patient’s reason for seeking medical advice and the patient’s expectations. The patient’s visit may have been precipitated by the feeling that a minor symptom may be something serious. If tests can rule out this possibility, reassurance may serve as a therapeutic action. When possible, physicians…
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…to be considered is the patient’s reason for seeking medical advice and the patient’s expectations. The patient’s visit may have been precipitated by the feeling that a minor symptom may be something serious. If tests can rule out this possibility, reassurance may serve as a therapeutic action. When possible, physicians…
Read More