Informed consent: does practice match conviction?
The need to obtain consent is an ethical principle and a legal requirement in health care that must be applied in practice. Dentists must give people the appropriate information about treatment options, risks, and benefits so that they are able to make informed choices before giving their free consent to any dental intervention. The British research reported on here supports the view that dentists generally have positive views about informed consent. But the companion program of observation of dentists in the clinic suggests that they do not have a systematic approach to obtaining consent and that patients are often told what is going to be done rather than asked. Dentists must approach informed consent more systematically, recognizing it as an integral part of treatment planning with the patient as developing the communication skills needed to do it well.
King
Jennifer
J
Department of Adult Oral Health, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary College, University of London, Turner Street, London E1 2AD.
D003142:Communication; D003815:Dentists; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent / Q000941:ethics*; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D019239:Practice Patterns, Dentists'; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires