title: The information requested by patients prior to giving consent to anaesthesia.
abstract: Patients in a teaching hospital in Scotland were given the opportunity to ask for further information relating to their peri-operative anaesthetic management. One investigator visited all of the patients pre-operatively and asked a standard list of anaesthetic-related questions. Our objectives were to determine what additional information patients would request before giving their consent to anaesthesia. The majority of patients (n=469, 67%) had no further questions at a point when so-called consent could have been obtained. Of the questions asked, 209 (66%) were related to anaesthesia and 93 (30%) to the proposed surgery. Only two patients in the group studied requested a full explanation of their peri-operative anaesthetic management. The question most commonly asked related to the duration of surgery, with less priority being given to questions relating to complications of anaesthesia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anaethesia, Gartnavel General Hospital, Shelly Court, Glasgow, UK.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Moores
authors.forename: N A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Pace
mesh_terms: D000758:Anesthesia / Q000009:adverse effects; D001294:Attitude to Health; D003142:Communication; D006784:Hospitals, Teaching; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D011300:Preoperative Care; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012606:Scotland