title: Informed consent in the emergency department.
abstract: This article reviews the doctrine of informed consent to treatment, with particular attention to its role in the emergency department. The article begins with a brief look at the moral and legal foundations of informed consent. The article then examines the three essential features of informed consent, patient capacity, disclosure of information, and voluntariness. After a review of five exceptions to the duty to obtain informed consent, the article concludes with a brief summary of issues of special significance for emergency physicians.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Humanities, East Carolina University School of Medicine, Greenville, North Carolina, USA.
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Moskop
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004635:Emergency Medicine / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D004992:Ethics, Medical; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D008297:Male; D016743:Mental Competency / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D010344:Patient Advocacy / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D010353:Patient Education as Topic / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D010819:Physician's Role; D011634:Public Health / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D016312:Treatment Refusal / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D014342:Truth Disclosure; D014481:United States