About the right to be ill

Abstract

The article raises the issue of ‘the right to be ill’, formulated by Tadeusz Kielanowski, a Polish physician and humanist. According to him, the right to health should be supplemented by the principle which would serve the protection of people with diseases or disabilities. One-sided interpretation of ‘the right to health’ may result in various forms of intolerance and discrimination. This paper presents what dangers Kielanowski recognized and explains why his approach was considered to be a novelty; what the idea of ‘the right to be ill’ is, how the need for it is substantiated. This idea is considered in the context of human rights and it constitutes a starting point for the reflection on social phenomena connected with medicine. Taking into account the changes in medical ethics and culture which have taken place in the recent decades the question has been asked—is it worth talking about the right to be ill these days? Giving positive answers to this question, the spheres and issues that have been presented can be analyzed and assessed from the perspective of the right to be ill.