Medical Malpractice Lawyer

Jacksonville, Florida

Informed Consent

Every time a patient requires a surgery or some other medical procedure, formal consent to perform that procedure must be given by the patient to the healthcare professional. The technical name for giving permission to proceed with surgery following an explanation of the procedure and the risks involved is referred to as "informed consent." Informed consent is the "process by which a fully informed patient can participate in choices about his/her health." If a surgery is performed without informed consent, medical malpractice has taken place.

Ethically speaking, each patient has the right to direct what happens to his body, and the doctor (or some other medical professional) is legally and ethically obligated to involve the patient in his health care and involve him in the decisions about how he should be treated. The most important aspect of informed consent is that the patient is an active participant in decisions about how his health issues will be treated.

While most people are familiar with egregious medical malpractice and medical negligence situations such as removing the wrong limb, leaving a surgical sponge in the body, or operating on the wrong patient altogether, few are aware that failure to get informed consent is a form of medical malpractice. Unfortunately, it’s a rather common type of medical malpractice and can have just as devastating effects as operating on the wrong site or nicking an artery while operating. For example, if a patient agrees to a colonoscopy but the physician goes on to perform a bowel resection without the patient’s further consent, the procedure may have been performed without informed consent.  A patient has a right to know about the procedures planned and then decide what he wants to happen to his body. If a surgeon performs an operation without the patient’s permission, the patient (if he survives) may have a valid medical malpractice claim. If the surgery results in death, the family's spouse would potentially be able to file a wrongful death suit.

Informed Consent Elements

When considering informed consent as a medical malpractice issue, the following elements must exist:

• The nature of the procedure must be clear
• Reasonable alternatives to the procedure must be explained
• Relevant risks, benefits, and uncertainties must be discussed
• Patient must have clear understanding of everything involved with procedure
• Patient must "accept" performance of the procedure

Simply put, informed consent states that the patient understands the procedure and everything that is involved with it, including risks.

If you or a loved one has suffered due to medical malpractice related to a physician failing to obtain informed consent, please contact the Jacksonville, Florida medical malpractice lawyer at Hardesty Tyde Green & Ashton, P.A.