Exegesis of the Holy Qur’an as Legal Framework of Muslim Patients’ Rights in the Contemporary Muslim Societies
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.28918/aqwal.v6i1.10639Abstract
Background and Objectives: Muslims in non-Islamic states continuously face lots of challenges regarding recognition and observance of the Muslim patients’ rights (MPRs). There is widespread misconception that Islamic law does not explicitly cover patients’ rights. Methodology: The study adopts doctrinal method of Islamic legal research exploring foundation of the MPRs from the Holy Qur’an. Qur’anic exegesis explores Tafseer of Al-Qurtubi and As-Sa’di which are based on Ayat al-Ahkam (legislative verses). Relevant secondary sources of information were explored at academia, google scholar, google search engine, research gate, sage-pub, semantic, Brill, and jostor.
The main results: The study finds that the MPRs emanated from the relevant verses of the Holy Qur’an especially the Qur’an Chapter 24 verse 30-31 and Quran Chapter 33 verse 59. The MPRs include same-gender treatment, presence of mahram during medical treatment, privacy and coverage of ‘awrah, separate hospital wards for different genders etc. Though the MPRS are very sacrosanct; they are not absolute and relaxable under emergencies to save life in compliance with certain cautions. This research contribution: The existing literature focused on medical fatwas and thematic interpretations with dearth of Qura’nic interpretative literature of modern healthcare regarding MPRs. The study fills the gap by coming up with up a model of legal framework, mapping table of verses and policy recommendations for the contemporary Muslim societies. Conclusion: The study finds that the MPRs are inherently inalienable having emanated from Holy Qur’an. The study recommends pragmatic integration of Islamic etiquettes in hospital policies and medical principles for the recognition of the MPRs
Keywords:
References
Ahmad, N. M. (2024). ‘The Al-Qur’an in the View of Western Scholars: Analysis of Orientalist Thoughts on the Study of the Al-Qur’an’ AQWAL: Journal of Qur’an and Hadis Studies 5(1) 72-88
Alfarizi, M. & Arifian, R. (2023). ‘Patient satisfaction with Indonesian Sharia Hospital Services: Halal Healthcare Tool and Implications for Loyalty-WoM’ Asian Journal of Islamic Management (AJIM) 5(1) 18-35
Al-Qurtubi, I. (2018(a)). Al-Jaami’u al-Ahkaam - al-Qur’an al-Juz’ al-Haada ‘Ashara (Dar Al-Ghad Al-Gadeed, [1439 AH]) 158-161
Al-Qurtubi, I. (2018(b)). Al-Jaami’u al-Ahkaam al-Qur’an - al-Juz’ al-Awwal (Dar Al-Ghad Al-Gadeed, [1439 AH]) 169, 174-175
Al-Qurtubi, I. (2018(c)). Al-Jaami’u al-Ahkaam al-Qur’an - al-Juz’ ath-Thalaath ‘Ashara (Dar Al-Ghad Al-Gadeed, [1439 AH]) 169-172
Anyim, W. O. (2019). ‘Research Under Nigerian Legal System: understanding the Sources of Law for Effective Research Activities in Law Libraries’ Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal) 2383
Arifin, S. R. M. et al, (2022). ‘Understanding Doctors’ and Nurses’ Roles in the Islamic Medical Practice and Rukhsah Solah in Shariah-Compliant Hospital’ Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences 18 (19) 93-98
As-Sa’di, A. (2018(a)). Tafseer AS-Sa’di Volume 6, Juiz’ 16-18 (International Islamic Publishing House, Riyadh) 401-402
As-Sa’di, A. (2018(b)). Tafseer AS-Sa’di Volume 8, Juiz’ 1-3 (International Islamic Publishing House, Riyadh) 206-209
As-Sa’di, A. (2018(c)) Tafseer AS-Sa’di Volume 8, Juiz’ 22-24 (International Islamic Publishing House, Riyadh) 58-60
Attum, B, et al. (2023) ’Cultural Competence in the Case of Muslim Patients and their Families’ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK499933/ accessed 6 October, 2024
Fatwa (Resolution No. 81 (12/8) Treatment of a Female Patient by a Male Doctor) issued by the International Islamic Fiqh Academy, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia <https://iifaaifi.org/eg/32494.html#:~:text=The%20male%20doctor’s%20treatment%0f,0f%20persons%20of%opposite%20sex)> Accessed on 27 June 2024
Hamzah, et al, M. H. (2019). ‘The Establishment of Fundamental Shariah Compliant Hospital Management in Malaysia’ Journal of Halal Industry and Services 2(1) 1-5.
Idhiarhi, S.E. (2024). ‘Bill of Rights for patient in Nigeria: An Exploratory Essay’ <https://www.researchgate.net/publication/34908576_BILL_OF_RIGHTS_FOR_PATIENT_IN_NIGERIA_AN_EXPLORATORY_ESSAY>
accessed 27 November 2024.
Ismail, S, et al. (2024) ‘The Role of Workers in Strengthening the Concept of Shariah-Compliant Hospitals from the Perspective of Maqasid Sharia’ International Journal of Academic Research in Business & Social Sciences 14(2), 2
Ismail, S. K. and Abdul Mutalib, L. (2022). ‘Determination of the Malaysian Sharia Index in Health Aspects According to the Perspective of Maqasid Sharia’ International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences 12(10) 1060-1065
Jamaludin, et al, F. I. C. (2023) ‘Establishing a Sustainable Shariah Compliant Hospital in Malaysia: Exploring the Pertinent Concept’ International conference on Environment, Social and Governance 670-685
Kanabe, M. (2024). ‘Premium Times’ accessed 26 June 2024.
Kelvas, D. (2024). ‘Operating Room Protocols: What Happens in the Surgery Room’ https://www.hipaexams.com/blog/operating-room-protocols# accessed 20 August 2024
Mataram, N. (2023). ‘Awrah and Women’s Clothing: Reinterpretation of Islamic Texts in Indonesian Contexts’ At-Tura: Jurnal Studi Keislaman, 10(2) 282-295
Osime, C. O. (2018) ‘Patients’ Bill of Rights: A Wake Up Call for the Practicing Physician’ Orient Journal of Medicine 30 (3-4) v-vi
Prayogi, A. et al, (2024). ‘Instinbath Method of Islamic Law: A Descriptive Study’ AL-MIDAD: Jurna Ilmu Pendidikan dan Studi Keislaman 1(1) 13
Rimiyati, H. & Susanto, M., (2020). ‘Sharia Hospital Management in terms of Religion Surveillance Aspect in Yogyakarta’ Advances in Economics, Business and Management Research (176) 277-284
Shariff S. and Abdul Rahman A. (2016). ‘Shariah Compliant Hospital; From Concept to Reality: A Malaysian Experience’ Bangladesh Journal of Medical Science 15(01) 1
Shariff, S. M. & Rahman, A. R. A. (2016). ‘Shari‘ah Compliant Hospital; From Concept to Reality: A Malaysian Experience’ Bangladesh Journal of Medical Science 15(01) 1-4
Vellturo M and Omer, M. (2021). Religious Freedom Violations against Muslims in Africa (United Nation Commission on International Religious Freedom, Washinton, DC)
Yahaya, R. R. (2018). ‘What is Shariah Compliant Hospital Criteria and Scope’ International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences 8(5) 1057-1065
Zagloul, M, et al. (2024). ‘Review of Muslim Patient Needs and Its Implications on Healthcare Delivery’ Journal of Primary Care & Community Health 15, 1-11
Zubair, A. (2018). Introduction to Islamic Constitutional and Administrative Law (Da’awah Foresight Services, Kaduna) 134-188
Downloads
Published
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Ahmed Abiodun Muhammed-Mikaaeel, Abdul-Qadir Zubair, Abdulsalam Lukman Oladele
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Aqwal: Journal of Quran and Hadies Studies is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
An author who publishes in Aqwal: Journal of Quran and Hadies Studies agrees to the following terms:
- Author retains the copyright and grants the journal the right of first publication of the work simultaneously licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal
- Author is able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal’s published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book) with the acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Author is permitted and encouraged to post his/her work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of the published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
Read more about the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License here https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/.
