Informed consent for antipsychotic medication.
OBJECTIVE
To determine family physicians' attitudes and practices regarding documentation of informed consent for antipsychotic medication.


METHODS
Pilot cross-sectional study.


METHODS
Teaching and non-teaching hospitals in Toronto, Ont.


METHODS
Thirty family physicians were selected in equal numbers from teaching and non-teaching hospitals with no more than five physicians from a given hospital. Participants were treating at least 10 patients with antipsychotic medication. Participants' mean age was 44.3 years; 83% were men.


METHODS
Documentation of consent and of disclosure of consent for antipsychotic medication in patients' charts.


RESULTS
Documentation was found in only 13% of charts. Whether it was there or not did not correlate with information disclosed, score on an attitude scale, or demographics. Physicians who found documentation time-consuming were less likely to document. Most physicians disclosed reasons for antipsychotic medication, but less than half described tardive dyskinesia, a potentially irreversible movement disorder that affects about 25% of patients on long-term treatment.


CONCLUSIONS
The low rate of documentation observed in this sample was consistent with reports of similar samples and might indicate that family physicians are unaware of recommendations for documentation or simply do not have time to keep abreast of current recommendations. Many physicians thought signed consent forms unnecessary for psychotic patients, and even more believed seeking consent for antipsychotic medications would increase patient anxiety.
Schachter
D
D
Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Ont. schacterd@cs.clarke-inst.on.ca
Kleinman
I
I
Williams
J I
JI
D000328:Adult; D014150:Antipsychotic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005194:Family Practice; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent; D008297:Male; D016743:Mental Competency; D008875:Middle Aged; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians' / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy
D014150:Antipsychotic Agents