title: Survey of the information given to patients about blood transfusion and the need for consent before transfusion.
abstract: There is no current requirement in the United Kingdom to provide patients with information about blood transfusion or to seek their written consent to transfusion. To study patients' attitudes to these questions, a questionnaire survey was carried out on 51 patients during an admission to hospital in which they received a blood transfusion. The patients in this survey, although mostly satisfied about the information they were given before they were transfused, would have welcomed more general information about transfusion, mainly because of concerns about the risk of viral infections. Nearly 40% of patients thought that written consent should be obtained before transfusion, but the ethical and practical aspects of this issue are complex. Further debate would be required before implementation of written consent to transfusion could be considered as a routine policy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Haematology, St Bartholomew's, London, UK.
authors.forename: M F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Murphy
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Docherty
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Greenfield
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001803:Blood Transfusion; D032962:Consent Forms; D030881:Disclosure; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D010358:Patient Participation; D018570:Risk Assessment; D006113:United Kingdom