The rights of the patient
The patient ombudsman
The patient ombudsman gives guidance and advice to patients and their relatives in matters relating to the patient’s treatment and patients’ rights. The patient ombudsman gives advice and assists, if necessary, in submitting an objection, complaint or notification of patient injury to the Patient Insurance Centre.
In case of any dissatisfaction with your treatment, we recommend that you first contact your treating physician or the Service Manager of the unit at which you were treated. Objections concerning your treatment can be submitted directly to Medical Director Paula Arvilommi. Her contact details are available from the switchboard operator, tel. +358 10 380 3800.
The patient ombudsman will not take a stand on medical solutions, and they are not authorised to make decisions.
Patient ombudsman Sari Niemelä
E-mail: potilasasiamies@aava.fi
Service hours Mon-Fri 12 noon–2 p.m., tel. +358 50 375 4980
For more information on patient rights, please visit the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health website. A printable notice of injury form can be found on the Patient Insurance Centre website.
Request for the release of patient records
Use this link to open the form containing a request for your patient records stored in Aava’s patient register. You may fill in the form on your computer, print it out, sign it and bring it to your nearest Aava Medical Centre.
You must have a photo ID to prove your identity, either when you hand over the request form or when you arrive to collect the patient documents. If you wish to have someone else collect your patient documents, you must prove your identity upon making the request and the person collecting the patient records must have a power of attorney. The person with the power of attorney must have a photo ID to prove his or her identity.
If you live far away or are unable to personally collect the patient records, the records can be sent as registered mail to be personally collected at the post office (not by proxy). The price of this service is EUR 20 and it is charged to you on an invoice attached to the letter (the price only applies to domestic postal deliveries).
Our procedures are based on the Act on the Status and Rights of Patients 785/1992 and on the publication 2012:4 “Preparing and handling patient records” by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health.
Rectification of patient documents
The patient has the right to request the rectification, erasure or completion of inaccurate or incomplete patient information that concerns them. A guardian may make the request on behalf or a minor.
A request for rectification can be printed via this link or you may pick one up at an Aava clinic. While making the written request, please specify as carefully as possible the information to be rectified or erased. The request for rectification should be submitted in person to an Aava Medical Centre as the patient’s identity must always be verified before the request is processed.
When a patient requests the rectification of patient documents, the treating physician or another health care professional will assess whether the information is required for providing treatment and whether there are grounds for its rectification, supplementation or erasure. If there are no grounds for rectification, a certificate of refusal, explaining why the request was refused, shall be provided.
Acting on behalf of the patient
If the patient finds it difficult to take care of matters with Aava Medical Centre by themselves, they may grant a power of attorney to another person to deal with health care matters on their behalf. The power of attorney must be in writing. The power of attorney must clearly specify the services to which it applies. Use this link to access the power of attorney form.
You may fill in the power of attorney form on your computer, print it out, sign it and bring it to your nearest Aava Medical Centre. The identity of the person granting the power of attorney is verified when the form is being submitted. If the person to whom the power of attorney has been given submits the form on behalf of the patient, the power of attorney requires two competent adult witnesses. In these cases, the identity of the person receiving the power of attorney is verified when the form is being submitted.
If the patient wishes to do so, they may cancel the power of attorney at any time by submitting a written cancellation to Aava Medical Centre.
Accessing log data
When the patient wishes to be informed of the people who have accessed their data in the patient information system, they should submit a written request. Use this link to open the form for requesting access to log data.
If you suspect your patient data has been handled without legal basis, you can request clarification by using this request form.
The request to access log data, bearing the signature of the customer, should be sent to the data controller to the following address:
Aava Medical Centre, log data requests
Myllytie 1A
04410 Järvenpää, Finland
You can also send the form to lokitietopyynnot@aava.fi by using secure email.
The customer will be contacted within two (2) weeks of the date the data controller received the request. The customer’s identity will be verified using a valid photo ID before the information is disclosed. The log data will be released to be viewed in person at the premises of the data controller.