Informed Consent Essay -- Medical Care

Informed consent is the basis for all legal and moral aspects of a patient’s autonomy. Implied consent is when you and your physician interact in which the consent is assumed, such as in a physical exam by your doctor. Written consent is a more extensive form in which it mostly applies when there is testing or experiments involved over a period of time. The long process is making sure the patient properly understands the risk and benefits that could possible happen during and after the treatment. As a physician, he must respect the patient’s autonomy. For a patient to be an autonomous agent, he must have legitimate moral values. The patient has all the rights to his medical health and conditions that arise. When considering informed consent, the patient must be aware and should be able to give a voluntary consent for the treatment and testing without being coerced, even if coercion is very little. Being coerced into giving consent is not voluntary because other s people’s opinions account for part of his decision. Prisoners and the poor population are two areas where coercion is found the most when giving consent. Terminally ill patients also give consent in hope of recovering from their illness. Although the possibilities are slim of having a successful recovery, they proceed with the research with the expectation of having a positive outcome. Although the physician provides adequate information to his patient, how can he ensure that his patient properly knows everything and is capable of making the decision? Prisoners and the poor population are simply two groups that are easily coerced into giving consent to medical research. Although prisoners give consent, I don’t believe many are voluntarily giving consent, but... ...on from your patient that could possible alter his decision. The patient should have rights to know all information and statistics about the doctor and the success rate of all treatment options revealed. The information, in which, the doctor reveals or does not reveal fall under the category of reasonable clinician standard. Reasonable clinician standard is inconsistent with informed consent because the focus is on the physician rather than the patient’s best interest. Works Cited Davis, John K. "Precedent Autonomy and Subsequent Consent." Ethical Theory and Moral Practice 40.3 (2004): 267-91. Gert, Heather. "Avoiding Surprises: A Model for Informing Patients." The Hastings Center Reports 32.5 (2002): 23-32. Nelson, Robert, and Jon Merz. "Voluntariness of Consent for Research: An Empirical and Conceptual Review." Medical Care 40.9 (2002): 69-80.