Abstract:
Patients’ rights are one of the major aspects of human rights. As a
member of the multidisciplinary healthcare team, nurses have a responsibility to
preserve patients’ rights.
Objective: To assess the attitude on patients’ rights among nurses working at
Teaching Hospital Jaffna.
Methodology: This was a hospital-based descriptive cross-sectional study carried
out among 684 nurses working in all wards, clinics, and units of the Teaching
Hospital, Jaffna. By using a simple random proportionate sampling technique, 421
participants were required for the study. Ethical clearance was obtained from the
Ethics Review Committee, Faculty of Medicine, University of Jaffna. A pretested and
validated self-administered questionnaire was used to collect the data. Data were
analyzed using descriptive and analytical statistics using SPSS version 27. The
results were presented as mean, standard deviation (SD), frequency, and percentage.
Results: The response rate was 88.2%. The age of participants varied from 25 to 57
years old. The majority of them were female (70.4%). Participants were categorized
into positive attitude (77.8%) and negative attitude (22.2%) by using a 50% pre
determined cut-off value, and the mean attitude score was 29.46. The majority have
a good attitude toward treating patients with dignity and comfort (98.9%). Half of
the participants emphasized the right to patient decision and the right to appoint a
healthcare proxy. Patient’s safety and security (99.2%), confidentiality (84.1%) are
positively consistent with Turkish and Egyptian studies.
Conclusion: The study concludes, nearly two-thirds of nurses have a positive attitude
towards patients’ rights. However, a significant proportion still held negative attitudes,
particularly regarding autonomy. In-service programs are recommended to strengthen
awareness and foster more comprehensive protection of patient rights.
