Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2010 Feb 23:11:2.
doi: 10.1186/1472-6939-11-2.

Anaesthetists' and surgeons' attitudes towards informed consent in the UK: an observational study

A A B Jamjoom  1 , S White, S M Walton, J G Hardman, I K Moppett
Affiliations

Anaesthetists' and surgeons' attitudes towards informed consent in the UK: an observational study

A A B Jamjoom et al. BMC Med Ethics. .

Abstract

Background: The attitudes of patients' to consent have changed over the years, but there has been little systematic study of the attitudes of anaesthetists and surgeons in this process. We aimed to describe observations made on the attitudes of medical professionals working in the UK to issues surrounding informed consent.

Method: A questionnaire made up of 35 statements addressing the process of consent for anaesthesia and surgery was distributed to randomly selected anaesthetists and surgeons in Queen's Medical Centre (Nottingham), Royal Sussex County Hospital (Brighton) and Eastbourne District General Hospital (Eastbourne) during 2007. Participants were asked to what extent they agreed with statements regarding consent.

Results: Of 234 questionnaires distributed, 63% were returned. Of the respondents 79% agreed that the main purpose of the consent process is to respect patient autonomy. While 55% of the examined cohort agreed that the consent process maybe inappropriate as patients do not usually remember all the information given to them. Furthermore, 84% of the participants agreed that what the procedure aims to achieve should be explained to the patient during the consent process. While of the participants, over 70% agreed that major risks of incidence greater than 1/100 should be disclosed to the patient as part of the consent process.

Conclusions: The majority of respondents appear to hold attitudes in standing with current guidelines on informed consent however there was still a significant minority who held more paternalistic views to the consent process bringing into question the need for further training in the area.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Disclosure of minor risk based on incidence. Percentage of anaesthetists and surgeons who agreed to statements related to disclosing minor risk dependant on incidence.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Disclosure of major risk based on incidence. Percentage of anaesthetists and surgeons who agreed to statements related to disclosing major risk dependant on incidence.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Department of Health's Good Practice in consent implementation guide: consent to examination or treatment. Department of Health, London; 2001.
    1. Bernat JL, Peterson LM. Patient-Centered Informed Consent in Surgical Practice. Arch Surg. 2006;141:86–92. doi: 10.1001/archsurg.141.1.86. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Dawes PJ, Davison P. Informed consent: what do patients want to know? J Royal Soc Med. 1994;87:149–52. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Beresford N, Seymour L, Vincent C, Moat N. Risks of elective cardiac surgery: what do patients want to know? Heart. 2001;86:626–31. doi: 10.1136/heart.86.6.626. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Wiseman OJ, Wijewardena M, Calleary J, Masood J, Hill JT. 'Will you be doing my operation doctor?' Patient attitudes to informed consent. Ann R Coll Surg Engl. 2004;86:462–4. doi: 10.1308/1478708041109. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources