Your healthcare rights

At CAHS, we aim to provide children, young people, families and carers with the highest level of care when using our services.

The Australian Charter of Healthcare Rights explains what you, or someone you care for, can expect when receiving healthcare from us. 

While in our care, you have a right to:

Access

  • Healthcare services and treatments that meet your/your child’s needs

Safety

  • Receive safe and high quality healthcare that meets national standards
  • Be cared for in an environment that makes you/your child feel safe

Respect

  • Be treated as an individual and with dignity and respect
  • Have your/your child’s culture, identity, beliefs and choices recognised and respected

Partnership

  • Ask questions and be involved in open and honest communication
  • Make decisions with your/your child’s healthcare provider, to the extent that you choose and are able to
  • Include the people that you want in planning and decision-making

Information

  • Clear information about your/your child’s condition and the possible benefits and risks of different tests and treatments so you can give your informed consent
  • Receive information about services, waiting times and costs
  • Be given assistance, when you need it, to help you understand and use health information
  • Request access to your/your child’s health information
  • Be told if something has gone wrong during your/your child’s healthcare; how it happened; how it may affect you; and what is being done to make care safe

Privacy

  • Have your/your child’s personal privacy respected
  • Have information about your/your child’s health kept secure and confidential

Give feedback

  • Provide feedback or make a complaint without it affecting the way that you/your child are treated
  • Have your concerns addressed in a transparent and timely way
  • Share your experience and participate to improve the quality of care and health services

How you can help us

CAHS is committed to child and family centred care. This means we provide care in partnership with our children, young people, families and carers. To help us provide the best care, we ask you to:

  • Tell us if you have concerns about the care you are receiving from our service and help us identify where we can make improvements
  • Ask questions if there’s anything you don’t understand
  • Attend appointments or tell us in advance if you need to reschedule
  • Let us know of any change in your personal information, including contact numbers
  • Share accurate health information with us
  • Follow the instructions for your child’s agreed treatment and let us know if there are any problems
  • Let us know about any special needs you and/or your family have, particularly any cultural, religious or access needs.

We want our services to be delivered in safe and supportive environments, so we ask all staff, families, patients/clients and visitors to:

  • Treat others with kindness and respect
  • Behave in a manner that is not aggressive or abusive
  • Take care of personal property and respect Child and Adolescent Health Service property
  • Know that the health service has a special role in training health care professionals. Each person’s treatment may provide an opportunity for such training.

Feedback

We welcome your feedback, both positive and negative. It helps us provide you with a better service that meets our vision of healthy kids, healthy communities.

No smoking

To protect patients, visitors and staff, PCH is a smoke-free environment. This means that you are not able to smoke at PCH or on the QEII Medical Centre site.

Filming and photography

You can film and photograph your child while they are a patient at PCH. 

Any photography or filming of PCH staff (all staff, including nurses and doctors), other children in the hospital or their family/carers without their permission is prohibited to ensure their privacy.

Do you need an interpreter?

Interpreters are available if you have difficulties with English. Please speak to one of our staff or call the Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS) on 131 450 to facilitate your call. 

National Interpreter Service icon

You can also access translated information about the Charter, including in 19 community languages, braille and Auslan versions.

Support from Aboriginal health services  

Aboriginal Liaison Officers (ALOs) provide assistance and support to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families with children and young people attending PCH. You can get in touch with an Aboriginal Liaison Officer by:

  • Visiting Clinic L on Level 4 at PCH (the ALOs can visit you on the ward if you would prefer)
  • Phone: 6456 2222 (asking for the Aboriginal Liaison Officer)
  • Asking your child’s nurse or doctor to make a referral for you.