Abstract
Our aim was to determine from the general community an understanding of the implications of informed consent, expectations in regard to self-autonomy, appreciation of risk in surgery, the implications of surgical complications, the degree of acceptability of risk for a given complication and views on surgeon liability.
One thousand questionnaires were distributed to members of the general public attending the Palmerston North Hospital as outpatients or visitors (inpatients were excluded).
Less than 20% of respondents appreciated the concepts of battery, negligence, self-autonomy and confidentiality. 59% wanted to know about potential complications in order to assist them in making a decision on whether or not to proceed with surgery. Given options and a discussion of the risks, 64% wished to take responsibility for which surgical procedure they would undergo. 9% were unaware that surgical procedures had risks of serious complications. 10% would not undertake surgery if the risk of a serious complication was one in a million, while 30% would undertake surgery regardless of the risk involved. 21% felt the surgeon would be liable in the event of an unmentioned rare complication.
The grasp of the perceived objective of informed consent is poor amongst the general population. The tolerance for medical negligence is low and expectations in regard to self-autonomy seem unrealistically high. We feel it is necessary to revisit ‘informed consent’ and for the public (and the legal profession) to make ‘informed consent’ a practical goal-orientated patient/doctor friendly process rather than the existing ‘legal obstacle’ that it is.
The abstracts were prepared by Jean-Claude Theis. Correspondence should be addressed to him at Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Dunedin Hospital, Private Bag 1921, Dunedin, New Zealand.
