Patients' Rights & Responsibility
To provide patients with quality medical care
- We strive to provide quality medical care in the treatment of your medical condition(s), promoting your well-being and respect your right to appropriate assessment and management of pain.
To treat all patients with dignity and respect
- You shall be treated with respect, dignity and compassion regardless of race, gender, age, religion, nationality, sexual orientation, social status, mental or physical abilities.
This includes being:- Attended to and cared for with the understanding that other patients may have more urgent needs.
- Addressed by your proper name
- Provided with communication services like sign language, local/ dialect or foreign language interpretation if required.
- The hospital respects your right to seek a second opinion in relation to your care, and to request for discharge against medical advice. In doing so, you have to accept the responsibility for any medical consequences resulting from the decision.
- You have the right to make treatment or healthcare decisions in advance. All instructions related to your advance care planning will be respected and complied with, to the extent permitted by hospital policy, professional standards and the law.
- If you have previously planned an Advanced Medical Directive (AMD) as per the AMD act, we will respect your healthcare goals and wishes in accordance to the provisions of the AMD act.
- If you do not have an AMD, we will provide you with information to help plan an AMD, if you wish.
- If you or your family needs help in making difficult decisions, our counsellors, religious counsellors and others can help.
- If you are interested in volunteering in any research project or clinical trial, or are seeking information on research activities in NCID, you can approach any of the ward or clinic staff. If you are invited to volunteer in any research project, you are free to choose to participate or not to participate. If you change your mind after you have agreed, you can withdraw from a project at any time without need to provide a reason. You will receive the same quality of medical care whether you decide to participate in research or not.
- If you have any ethical concerns about the management of the patient, you can approach the ward nursing manager or team doctor to access ethics consultation services where appropriate.
- Medical treatment is administered in an environment that provides you with protection from harm by visitors, other patients, staff, and loss or theft of your personal possessions, especially when you are unable to assume responsibility.
To make known the identities and roles of each patient’s healthcare team
- You are entitled to know the identities and any additional information of the healthcare practitioners responsible for your care.
To maintain privacy and confidentiality of patient’s medical records
- You will be interviewed, examined and treated in a private environment.
- You are assured of the confidentiality of your medical records, including Electronic Medical Records, and that access is strictly limited to the healthcare professionals involved in your care (unless required by Singapore Laws and Regulations).
- A copy of your medical record/ report can be obtained upon request, in accordance with NCID’s policies.
To provide explanation, education and counselling to patients
- You will be informed of your diagnosis, treatment, expected results and any other information deemed relevant and significant by the doctor, in facilitating your decision in the treatment and care process. These include:
- Detailed explanation of your condition.
- Information on the planned course of treatment and procedures.
- Information on the risks, benefits and alternatives of treatment.
- Unanticipated outcomes, if any.
- You will be informed of your right to refuse or discontinue recommended treatment.
To provide a channel for patients’ compliments and feedback
NCID welcomes feedback on areas we have done well or can improve upon. If you have any feedback, compliments or complaints, please contact our Service Quality department at 6357 3078 from Mondays to Fridays, 9.00am to 5.00pm or write to us at here.
NCID will provide patient care within professional, financial, ethical and legal norms that protect you and your rights.
Provision of information
You are required to:
- Provide complete, detailed and accurate information about your health, including present and past conditions, allergies, medications or dietary supplements, hospitalisations, healthcare regimes and any other health-related matters.
- Inform us if you do not understand what our staff tells you about your condition or treatment.
Following the doctor’s recommended treatment plan
You are required to:
- Comply with the treatment plans prescribed by our healthcare professionals.
- Inform our staff if you anticipate problems in following the prescribed treatment.
- Be responsible for any consequences if you refuse medical treatment or leave the hospital against medical advice.
Respect and consideration for others
You are required to:
- Abide by all hospital rules and regulations pertaining to patients and visitors, including visiting hours.
- Treat hospital staff, other patients and visitors with respect and courtesy.
- Keep to and be on time for your appointments. Otherwise, please notify NCID early.
- Respect the confidentiality and privacy of others.
- Be responsible for the safekeeping of your valuables and personal possessions during your hospital stay.
- Treat the hospital’s properties and facilities with due care and responsibility.
Religious and/or spiritual counselling
- You are welcome to make arrangements for a religious counsellor to visit and pray for you while you are in the hospital. Please inform the nurse if you are expecting a religious counsellor to visit.
- Out of respect for other patients, please conduct your religious prayer in a manner that will not disturb other patients.
- If you need help in finding a religious counsellor or religious centre in Singapore, please approach our staff who will provide you with a list of contacts where such services are available.
- Where appropriate and possible, a trained nurse or medical social worker can also help to facilitate a spiritual counselling session.
Hospital Charges
You are required to:
- Pay your hospital and physician bills promptly.
- Seek clarification from our staff if there is a financial issue that you do not understand.
- Ask for help to better understand your health insurance coverage and related policies.
Clinical Training
NCID is a teaching facility committed to the education and training of healthcare staff including medical/ nursing/ allied health students and trainees. The competency and professionalism of our healthcare professionals will benefit from your cooperation and in their clinical training.
Donation of Organs
Organ donation provides hope for a better quality of life for patients suffering from end-stage organ failure.
The Human Organ Transplant Act (HOTA) provides for the donation of organs (kidney, heart, liver and cornea) upon brain death. This applies to all Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents aged 21 and above. This law presumes that individuals consent to donation unless they have personally registered their objection with the Ministry of Health by completing an opt-out card. You can help by not objecting to organ donation.
Click here for more information on brain death, HOTA or organ donation. You can also contact the MOH HOTA hotline at 1800-225-4122, organ donor registry at 6321 4390 or email MOH_info@moh.gov.sg.
Your relationship with us
Our doctors or nursing officers are available to discuss any concerns you have about your care. If you have any feedback on our services, please contact our Service Quality department at 6357 3078 from Mondays to Fridays, 9.00am to 5.00pm, or write to us at here.
We Respect and Keep Your Data Safe
The Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) protects your personal data while enabling organisations to use your data reasonably to serve you.
NCID, as a public healthcare institution, respects and keeps your data safe by:
- limiting access to only doctors and healthcare personnel who are involved in your care, and the supporting internal processes,
- conducting regular checks to ensure only authorised persons have accessed your data, and
- removing details that identify you when using your data for internal purposes as far as possible.
Serving You as a Public Healthcare Institution
When you seek care at other healthcare providers, we will share relevant data with them through trusted information systems like the National Electronic Health Record (NEHR) system.
We may use your personal data to invite you to participate in suitable care programmes, or shortlist you for participation in relevant research studies.
As a public healthcare institution, we share relevant data and participate in national and multi-agency efforts to:
- review healthcare policies and requirements,
- review programmes that ensure patient safety and improve the quality of healthcare services,
- conduct disease surveillance to address public health concerns, and
- train future generations of healthcare professionals.
Please be assured that if your personal data is collected, used or disclosed for these purposes, we will protect it as required under the PDPA and other relevant legislation such as the Private Hospitals and Medical Clinics Act.
Please refer to our NHG Personal Data Protection Policy for further information on our data protection commitment.
Last Updated on 28 Apr 2026
