may lead to misuse of medications as there is no real control over the existence, quantity and records of prescription medications. On this basis, the Chancellor found that the principles of handling medications did not conform to the established requirements. Therefore, the Chancellor recommended to ensure that the handling of medications takes place in line with the established requirements and that third parties cannot access the medications. With regard to the administration of medications, in case of two institutions87 there was also a suspicion that the hospital was administering prescription medications of the patients who had left the hospital to other patients for whom they had not been prescribed. As such a practice endangers the right of the patients to the protection of health (for example, the medication is not suitable for the patient due to their health condition or is incompatible with other medications prescribed to the person) and may lead to misuse of the medication, the Chancellor recommended to ensure that prescription medications are only administered to patients for whom they have been prescribed. In two institutions88 on some occasions the doctor had given the nurse an advance permission to administer sedative medications. The Chancellor explained that if the doctor has authorised the nurse to administer medications to a patient should a need arise, the nurse when assessing the need and administering the medication should document it in a way as to enable the health care service provider subsequently to verify for what reason the nurse decided to administer the medication at the particular time and in the particular quantity. Documenting and the subsequent control are necessary to avoid misuse of medications. Otherwise, there is a danger that a patient is administered medications without an indication corresponding to the aim of the treatment and, instead, the medications are administered for another (inadmissible) purpose. This may have serious or simply undesired consequences for the patient because a health care worker who is not a doctor and lacks the right to prescribe medications is not necessarily able to assess all the health risks. Therefore, the Chancellor recommended to ensure that health care workers make decisions within the boundaries of their acquired speciality when administering medications to patients or when making other nursing care related decisions, and if necessary they should also assess a patient’s condition personally and directly. The Chancellor also recommended to ensure that in a situation where a doctor has authorised a health care worker (nurse) lacking the competence of a doctor to administer a medication to a patient, the doctor maintains an effective and realistic opportunity to retrospectively verify the activities of the authorised worker. 8.3. Privacy Similarly to psychiatric hospitals, upon the inspection of providers of nursing care services during the reporting year the Chancellor found problems with ensuring privacy of the patients. In three institutions89 it was found during the tour that the department did not use screens for ensuring the privacy of the patients during their hygiene procedures, and in one of them patients were received in a room into which passers-by could freely see. Jõhvi Hospital, Järva County Hospital. Järva County Hospital, Narva Hospital. 89 Tartu University Hospital, Järva County Hospital, Võnnu Hospital. 87 88 43