Consent

Patients have the legal and ethical right to direct what happens to them, and physicians have the ethical duty to involve patients in their health care. (Iger, 2009) This results in the need for patient consent before performing any medical procedure. Patient consent provides the patient with the opportunity to take an active role in their health care. Depending on the situation, patient consent may be either informed or implied.

Informed consent requires a physician to disclose all information pertaining to the medical procedure required for the patient. According to Pozgar, a physician must disclose to the patient the potential of death, serious harm, and other complications associated with a proposed procedure. (2010)Iger also states that during this time reasonable alternatives to the procedure should be discussed. (2009) This allows the patient to ask questions and have a better understanding of all of the risk involved. By disclosing this information, the physician allows the patient to make an informed decision concerning the direction of their health care. Basically informed consent allows the patient to either consent to or deny medical treatment once all of the facts have been presented.

Implied consent on the other hand is not based on the actual decision of the patient. Implied consent will generally be presumed when immediate action is required to prevent death or permanent impairment of a patient’s health. (Pozgar, 2010, p 361)Implied consent can occur in an emergency situation when an informed consent can be obtained and the health care providers are unable to contact the individual responsible for making such decisions for the patient. In this situation it is presumed that the patient would want every step possible taken in order to maintain their health. Physicians work based on this presumption.

In order to perform a medical procedure patient consent must be provided. Patient consent is usually provided through oral consent or written...