Abstract
Introduction: one of the challenging issues in medical ethics is the nature and the domain of the patient's autonomy during the treatment process. Respecting their human privacy and autonomy is one of the most fundamental principles of medical ethics. The results of studies reveal that the autonomy of the patients in Iran is not observed well, and this is rooted in various cultural and social factors. Hence, according to the significance of this issue, the aim of the study is the perception of hospitalized patients regarding respecting to their autonomy in hospitals of Urmia.
Method: This study is cross-sectional descriptive research conducted on 528 patients admitted to hospitals of Urmia in 2019. Samples were selected using multistep random cluster sampling. The data collection instrument in this study is the demographic-social information questionnaire and Raei et al. Questionnaire of observing the patient's autonomy. The data analysis was done using SPSS-22 software.
Results: the results obtained from the study showed that the total mean value of observing patients' autonomy is about 13.2±2.9, which is almost undesirable. Besides, the results showed that about 51.7% of patients reported the autonomy observance undesirable, 44.1% reported that almost desirable, and only 1.1% reported autonomy observance at a desirable level. Also, the results showed that the amount of observance of autonomy of patients admitted to private hospitals is more than public hospitals (p=0.001, F=4.70).
Discussion and Conclusion: the findings of the study showed that the amount of observing autonomy of patients is in almost undesirable level, and this can leave a negative effect on the quality of medical services and satisfaction of the patients. Hence, according to the significance of the issue, managers and healthcare authorities must make the proper decisions to promote observance of patients' autonomy. Also, they have to consider the required training courses in this field of healthcare personnel.