Consent and DO NO HARM

Question 1

What is informed consent?

Answer 1

Involves the right of clients to be informed about their service or therapy and make autonomous decisions pertaining to it. Informed consent is both an ethical and legal obligation of the professional.

Question 2

Health Care Consent Act, 1996

Answer 2

A consent to treatment is informed if, before giving it, the person received the information that a reasonable person in the same circumstances would require in order to make a decision; AND the person received responses to his or her requests for additional information about those matters

Question 3

What are the elements of consent?

Answer 3

1. Consent must related to the treatment
2. Consent must be informed
3. Consent must be given voluntarily
4. Consent must not be obtained through misrepresentation or fraud

Question 4

What are MATTERS of consent?

Answer 4

1. Nature of the service or treatment
2. Expected benefits of the service or treatment
3. Material risks of the service or treatment
4. Material side effects of the service or treatment
5. Alternative courses of action
6. The likely consequences of not having the service or treatment

Question 5

What are standards of disclosure?

Answer 5

It is essential that clients have the necessary and sufficient information about a service if they are to decide to enter into a professional relationship. As professionals we are expected to do whatever is reasonably possible under the circumstances to provide clients with information adequate and sufficient to allow them to exercise their right to choose. 3 possible standards of disclosure: Full, professional and objective reasonable

Question 6

Standard of full disclosure

Answer 6

Requires that all information relevant to a given situation be provided. This standard is neither practical nor professionally or legally enforceable

Question 7

Professional standard of disclosure

Answer 7

Professional standard requires that we disclose as much information as a similar colleague would under similar circumstances. The problem with this standard is that it ignores the status of the client as an autonomous agent and places the decision in the hands of the professional.

Question 8

Objective reasonable standard

Answer 8

Holds that professionals have an obligation to ensure that our clients have whatever information a reasonable person would want to know in their situation in order to make the decision under consideration

Question 9

Freedom of consent

Answer 9

The value underlying consent is respect for the dignity of the individual and the right to autonomy so clients must be FREE to give their consent. Consent that is not obtained voluntarily does not represent true consent at all.

Question 10

Process of consent

Answer 10

Consent should be thought of as a process of working collaboratively with a client. The goal is never completely met!

Question 11

Professional Competence

Answer 11

Combination of a professional’s knowledge derived from science, their skills and judgement. Knowledge refers to the state of having absorbed and understood a body of information relevant to the profession. Skills refers to our ability to apply knowledge effectively in practice and judgement refers to knowing when to apply what knowledge and which skills under various circumstances in order to be helpful without harming.

Question 12

What are three duties and virtues of professionals?

Answer 12

1. Beneficence
2. Nonmaleficence
3. Diligence

Question 13

Beneficence

Answer 13

Act in accordance with caring and compassionate manner, with a strong connotation of doing good for others

Question 14

Nonmaleficence

Answer 14

Obligation of doing no harm, a simple principle that supports several rules

Question 15

Diligence

Answer 15

Refers to consistently attending to our knowledge, skills and judgement as applied to our professional field to benefit clients and to refrain from harming them