tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7476621888383604834.post8601610129290694931..comments2024-02-15T03:26:38.897-05:00Comments on Health Care Organizational Ethics: Mayo Clinic Skipped Written Informed Consent - Bravo!Jim Sabinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03087828142188534542noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7476621888383604834.post-73688634987467743552011-11-06T10:41:23.657-05:002011-11-06T10:41:23.657-05:00Dear Anonymous -
First, I want to send best wishe...Dear Anonymous -<br /><br />First, I want to send best wishes to your mother, who is waiting for her husband's release.<br /><br />It is <em>possible</em> that signed informed consent was ignored because Mr. Studnicka is a federal prisonor, for two reasons I doubt that that is what happened. First, as I indicated in my post with quotes from a Mayo Clinic article, Mayo focuses on informed consent as a transactional <em>process</em> between physician dna patient, not as an <em>event</em>, such as signing a document. <br /><br />Second, from my own experience, when the legal system is involved, as it is when one is treating a prisoner, physicians tend to be more careful about bureaucratic requirements, rather than less so.<br /><br />But, sadly, prisoners are often treated disrespectfully, so your speculation about the informed consent process could be correct.<br /><br />Best<br /><br />JimJim Sabinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03087828142188534542noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7476621888383604834.post-58858546436466762582011-11-04T13:48:09.676-04:002011-11-04T13:48:09.676-04:00Mr Studnicka is my mother's husband. She never...Mr Studnicka is my mother's husband. She never divorced/remarried and has been waiting for his release for many years. Is it possible that a signed written consent was disregarded because he is a federal prisoner?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7476621888383604834.post-71687512848633712762009-03-28T10:11:00.000-04:002009-03-28T10:11:00.000-04:00Dear Bakquak -I APOLOGIZE for only now coming upon...Dear Bakquak -<BR/><BR/>I APOLOGIZE for only now coming upon your comment. When you posted it I was on my way to India for a month, and I somehow missed it until now. I am VERY appreciative for a comment from Mr. Studnicka's lawyer and for your thoughtful analysis of the situation. <BR/><BR/>My reason for applauding Mayo's overall approach is that the signed consent form so often replaces a true process of informed consent. I would be surprised if a jury did not see a well documented note describing a well conducted informed consent process as adequate "proof" that the patient had been informed and had consented to the intervention(s). That's the approach I always followed in my practice. I agree that there needs to be good documentation, but I preferred doing that myself rather than asking my patient to sign on the dotted line. The signing felt like self-protection, not patient care, and I felt that I could protect myself in my own clinical note.<BR/><BR/>That said, not following legal requirements is a serious step for a healthcare facility or individual physician and should only be done for well thought out, serious reasons.<BR/><BR/>While I never liked the ritualistic signing process, I'm completely in favor of providing patients with written information, website links, videotapes/CDs, and any and all materials that can help them deepen their understanding of their situations and choices.<BR/><BR/>Again, thank you!<BR/><BR/>Best<BR/><BR/>JimJim Sabinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03087828142188534542noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7476621888383604834.post-13166391762813837602009-01-01T21:05:00.000-05:002009-01-01T21:05:00.000-05:00There is no question that the information Mayo's p...There is no question that the information Mayo's policy required them to include in the chart about consent is an important part of the informed consent process. But requiring a signed consent form in the chart before surgery is also crucial, both because the United States and Minnesota legislatures require it and because without it the only proof the patient consented comes from the doctor.<BR/><BR/>Having a signed informed consent form in the chart before surgery is, in logical terms, necessary but not sufficient for an appropriate informed consent. Alone, it isn't enough to show the patient was sufficiently informed. Without it, there is no proof the patient consented to anything.<BR/><BR/>Let's not confuse the fact that Mayo does many things well with the fact that they must also comply with the law.<BR/><BR/>Knowingly violating a law written to protect patients from unwanted medical care can never justify a "bravo", even if other components of the care are exemplary.<BR/><BR/>I am Mr. Studnicka's lawyer, as well as a Neurologist for the last 27 years.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18352145564957695148noreply@blogger.com