Medical

Law
 Medical law and its place in the system of law and
legislation in Ukraine.
Legislative provision in healthcare in Ukraine.
 
 The concept, object, method and principles of medical law.
 Medical relations: concept, types, composition.
 System and a source of medical law.
 Legal provision of health care in Ukraine: current state and
prospects of development.
 International legal acts in the field of health.
 

Medical law is the area of law.

a set of rules which regulate social relation
in the area of human health
(e. g. relations between patients and hospitals,
patients and medical workers,
medical worker and healthcare facility).
The rights, duties and responsibility related to diagnostics, treatment and other
medical activity.
 Basic selection criteria of law
branches
The object of regulation The method of regulation
Similar social relations for A set of legal instruments
regulation. which influence to the
What is regulated by this relationship (object)
branch of law? How do the rules regulate the
social relations?
 The object of medical law
the social relations which occur during medical activity

The methods of medical law

a set of legal instruments which regulate social relations during medical
activity

Administrative Civil legal method

legal method • The parity of subjects of
• Organizational, relations.
governmental and • The opportunity for
management instruments for independent determination of
medical activity subjects behavior (patients may
• The rules are compulsory choose the hospital and doctor)
for subordinate units
 Medical relations

Medical relations appear during the process of implementation of

human rights for health, which are the follows:
• during medical care (treatment and diagnostic procedures);
• medical preventive procedures;
• forensic activity;
• sanitary and hygienic procedures etc.

The relations, which are closely related to health ones:

• organization and management of health care;
• medical insurance;
• licensing of medical activity;
• accreditation of medical facilities;
• expertize of medical care quality etc.
 Basic Prinsiples of Medical Law
General legal principles :
• Social justice,
• Humanism,
• Legal equality,
• Legality,
• The unity of legal rights and duties.

Principles of medical law:

• respect for human right in health care;
• priority for preventive measurements;
• accessibility of medical care;
• social protection of humans in the case of loss of health;
• responsibility of state authorities for health care;
• legal Basis for human rights in health care.
The social relations acquire ordering regarding
to law and thus become legal relations

The primary feature of medical relations is their

occurrence from human moral rights – life and
health.
Medical legal relations —
are a result of the influence of medical (health) law to
the behavior of medical law SUBJECTS.
 Classification
Medical legal relations can be:

vertical horizontal
One of subjects has Legal equality of subjects
authority (power)
The other one is
subordinate.
 Classification
According to directions of activity medical legal relations
are the follows:

• Sanitary, hygienic and antiepidemic procedures;

• Measurements for prevention of dangerous infections,
quarantine;
• Free medical care;
• Paid medical service;
• Medical insurance;
• Medical expertise;
• Compulsory medical measures.
 Classification
According to activity of subjects:

Active Passive
Implementation of action Abstinence from activity
(e. g. the duties of medical (e. g. do not disclose medical
personnel to provide medical care) secrets).
 Medical legal relations structure
(the characteristics of medical relations according to its
internal structure)

SUBJECTS OBJECTS CONTENT

Subjects are the participants of relations which
have subjective rights and juridical duties.

Subjects of medical relations:

- SUBJECTS WHICH PROVIDE MEDICAL CARE .

- SUBJECTS WHICH RECEIVE MEDICAL CARE .

- SUBJECTS WHICH CONTRIBUTE TO MEDICAL

CARE PROVISION .
 Subjects which provide medical care
are:

HEALTHCARE FACILITIES
a legal entity of any form of ownership and organizational and
1. Healthcare legal form or its separate subdivision that provides medical care
to the population on the basis of the relevant license and
facilities professional activity of medical (pharmaceutical) workers.
(Article 3 Law of Ukraine “Fundamentals of legislation on health
care”)
THE ATTENDING PHYSICIAN
2.Healthcare
health facilities doctor or carrying out business activity in
professionals medical practice as an entrepreneur and providing medical aid
to a patient during his examination and treatment.
(Article 34 Law of Ukraine “Fundamentals of legislation on
health care”)
 CLASSIFICATION
BY THE TYPE OF OWNERSHIP

HEALTHCARE FACILITIES

STATE MUNICIPAL PRIVATE

 Subjects which contribute to medical
care provision :
• FINANCIAL AND ECONOMIC,
• SOCIAL,
• JURIDICAL DEPARTMENTS OF HOSPITAL AND SO
ON…
Subjects which receive
medical care
Patient
a natural person who has applied for medical care and / or person is
provided with such care.
(Article 3 Law of Ukraine “Fundamentals of legislation on health care”)
 A person becomes a subject of medical
legal relations (patient) after :
a) expressing the consent for providing him/her
medical care by the medical facility;
(if a person under the age of 14, medical intervention is carried out with the consent
of the legal representatives (usually parents)

b) In need of medical care according to medical

indication ( e.g.in emergency case)
 Medical facility becomes a
subject of medical legal relations
after:
a) agreement with patient;
b) legal registration;
c) acquiring license for medical activity;
d) qualified teams of medical staff
(state diploma of medical education, certificate of a specialist doctor).
 The main feature of subjects of medical
legal relations is ability to have capacity.

CAPACITY (legal ability to enter

into medical relations).
In Ukraine capacity is divided into:
1. LEGAL CAPACITY (an ability to have legal rights
and duties)
It arises from the moment of birth and ceases at
the moment of death
2. LEGAL ACTIVE CAPACITY (an ability to acquire
new legal rights and duties) Person can
understand the meaning of his/her actions and
can control them.
The amount of legal active capacity depends on
age, health status, etc.
Capacity may be limited to :
1.Minors (under 18 years)
2. People with mental illness
3. People under the influence of
drugs or alcohol and so on…
The object of medical relations is:
1.human life
and health;

3. the result of providing medical

care

2.the process of
providing medical
care
OBJECT OF MEDICAL RELATIONS

Health is a state of complete physical,

mental and social well-being and not
merely the absence of disease or
infirmity.
(Article 3 Law of Ukraine “Fundamentals of legislation on health care”)
Key aspects of the right to health:

Ø Safe drinking water and adequate sanitation;

Ø Safe food;
Ø Adequate nutrition and housing;
Ø Healthy working and environmental conditions;
Ø Health-related education and information;
Ø Gender equality.
Right to life is personal non-
property human rights
According to the Civil Code of Ukraine, the content of the right to life
includes the following elements:
1. prohibition of deprivation of life of an individual;
2. protection of one's life and health and other persons” life and persons from unlawful
encroachments by means not prohibited by law;
3. impossibility to conduct medical, scientific and other experiments on a minor,
incapacitated person or without his / her free consent;
4.prohibition of granting a request of an individual to terminate his life;
5. Sterilization is carried out only at the request of an adult individual;
6. artificial termination of pregnancy (if it does not exceed twelve weeks) can be carried
out at the request of the woman.
 The content of medical legal relations is a set of
subjective rights and juridical duties of subjects
related to objects. They should match each other and
are implemented in the subject`s behavior.

E. g. Subjective right of a patient to give the doctor an

agreement for treatment or not. But he has a juridical duty to
perform all doctor`s prescriptions and work rules of the
hospital.
At the same time doctor has a juridical duty to provide a
necessary medical care, but he has a rights to abandon the
patient who does not carry prescription.
They match.
 Internal structure of
the system of medical law

• Branch of law;
• Educational discipline;
• Legal science.
 As a branch of law
Medical law structure is based on:

Rules Institutes Sub-branches

of medical law of medical law of medical law
mandatory rules of a set of similar rules structural element of
behavior designed to of medical law legal system, which is
regulate medical separate part of medical
relationships and is ​law that regulates
provided similar groups of social
by state power relations
As an educational discipline
Medical law consists of:
GENERAL PART SPECIAL PART
Includes a lot of institutes devoted
includes rules that are relevant to all to a regulation of particular kind of
institutions and segments of the social relations. They are:
health law. It rules regulate:
Family planning and
Organization of health care reproductive function;
system;
Paid medical services;
human rights in health care;
Psychiatric care;
protection of human rights etc.
Defects of medical care etc.
As a part of legal science
Medical law consists of :

 Theoretical basics of medical law;

 Relations of medical law and other branches of
law;
 Searching of optimal methods of regulation of
new directions of medical activity;
 Improvement of juridical and medical education
etc.
 SOURCES OF MEDICAL LAW
Normative legal acts are written documents of
competent public authorities that contain formal
binding rules of conduct of a general nature.
 SOURCES OF
MEDICAL LAW

normative
legal acts international
of Ukraine agreements
which have
judicial been
precedents of Parliamentay
the European sanctions.
Court of Human
Laws
Rights

subordinate
regulatory
acts
THE CONSTITUTION
is recognized as the
fundamental Law of
Ukraine and other laws of
Ukraine;having the highest
legal force.
Only the Verkhovna
Rada is entitled to issue
normative acts in the form
of laws.
They are the highest
normative acts in Ukraine.
 Criteria for classification of
sources of Medical law:
 Juridical power
 The object of regulation.
 The character of regulation.
 The scope.
 Juridical
power
subordinate regulatory
laws
acts

Only the VERKHOVNA RADA

is entitled to issue normative The President of Ukraine The Cabinet of
acts in the form of laws. Ministers of
Ukraine
decrees and
directives resolutions
The Civil Code of Ukraine
e. g. “About e.g. «About the
The Criminal Code of
the Oath of statement of
Ukraine Codified Laws
the Doctor” Licensing
The Family Code of Ukraine
conditions of
The Labor Code of Ukraine
carrying out
Law of Ukraine “Bases of the the Ministry of Health of Ukraine economic activity
legislation of Ukraine on health on medical
care ”; orders practice»
Law of Ukraine "On psychiatric e.g.
care"
 Juridical power:
Statutes
are accepted according to the
special rules,
dedicated to the most important
areas of medical practice,
are accepted by the highest
legislative organ of Ukraine
Regulations
are accepted on the basis of
Statutes,
are accepted by the government,
other governmental authorities,
local governments, local counsils etc.
solve local problems of health care
 According to objects of regulation :
GENERAL SPECIAL
Wide range of Exclusively medical
relations – both relations
medical and other
ones
e.g.
e.g. “Bases of the legislation of Ukraine on health care”
The Civil Code of Ukraine "On psychiatric care“
The Criminal Code of Ukraine "On Medicines"
 According to character of regulation:
MATHERIAL PROCEDURAL
Regulate content of Regulate an order,
medical legal relations – procedures of
the rights and duties implementation of the
rights and duties
e.g. law of Ukraine “Bases of the
e.g. resolutions of the Cabinet of Ministers
legislation of Ukraine on health
of Ukraine «About the statement of Licensing
care”
conditions of carrying out economic activity
on medical practice»
 According to the scope:
General Local
(bylaws)

the law applies to the entire territory Local state administrations

of Ukraine and bodies of local self-
e.g. The Civil Code of Ukraine government issue
resolutions, orders,
decisions etc. to ensure the
observance of laws and
freedoms of citizens, and
the implementation of
development programs and
regional budgets.
International sources
Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine ( 1997).
International documents on health care (mainly the World Medical Association
, established in 1947 ):
International Code of Medical Ethics , adopted by the General Assembly World
Medical Association in 1948, as amended in 1968, 1983, 1994 ;
Declaration of Geneva of the World Medical Association adopted in 1949, with
amended 1968 and 1983 , focused on graduate medical universities - the
future doctors.
Recommendations for physicians conducting biomedical research on humans
(1964 );
The Lisbon Declaration on the Rights of Patients (1981 )
 International sources
Twelve principles of medical care in any system Health (1983);
Guidelines for the provision of health care in rural areas (1983);
Statement on the use of psychotropic drugs andabuse them ( 1983);
Statement on the use of anti-personnel assets and abuse them ( 1983);
Statement on Freedom of contacts between doctors (1984 );
Declaration of human rights and personal freedoms of medical workers ( 1985);
Statement of live (1985 );
International sources

Declaration of independence and professional freedom of doctors ( 1986);  

Declaration on euthanasia (1987)
Application for training medical personnel
Declaration on the transplantation of human organs (1987 );
Madrid Declaration on professional autonomy and self-government of physicians
(1987 );