Informed consent in physical medicine and rehabilitation. The physician/patient relationship--the doctor as a fiduciary.
This article reviews the principle of informed consent and the ethical and legal bases upon which it rests. The process of obtaining an appropriate informed consent is explored, and the elements that make a consent valid are delineated. The principles of substitute decision-making and the special rules applied to circumstances such as emergency, therapeutic privilege, refusal of consent, and medical necessity are discussed. The concept of the relationship between physician and patient as a fiduciary relationship is explored as the fundamental basis for the modern doctrine of informed consent.
College of Physicians & Surgeons of Ontario, 80 College Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5G 2E2. jcarlisle@cpso.on.ca
John R
JR
Carlisle
D004995:Ethics, Professional; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D010810:Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D012046:Rehabilitation / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D014342:Truth Disclosure