[The emancipated patient. A conflict between right of autonomy and encouragement to use one's right of autonomy properly]

Abstract

During the last decades, patients have acquired a wide range of legal rights. Judicial courts are administering these rights to actual situations leading to new obligations for health carers. In this article, the patient's right of autonomy and the dentist's care delivering obligations are examined. Sometimes these rights and obligations are clashing, requiring a decision which comes first. Disciplinary councils are expected to determine in actual situations primarily the dentist's obligations or the patient's rights mentioned in the complaint. Subsequently, they are asked to assess possible interferences with other obligations and patient's rights. Finally, they have to indicate how rights and obligations have to be weighed up.