What is Informed Consent? Know Your Rights as a Patient 

What is informed consent – and what happens if it’s breached?

Informed consent is a pillar of the healthcare system and an essential part of a provider’s legal and ethical duty of care. It refers to the process by which patients are provided with information about an upcoming test, procedure, or treatment and is based on the idea that every patient with a sound mind is entitled to the final say on their medical decisions.  

The purpose of informed consent is to ensure a patient understands all of the risks and benefits of a medical recommendation before consenting to it. And if it’s not provided, a provider or practice may be liable for medical malpractice. 

Keep reading for more information on informed consent in healthcare, including why it matters and the legal protections it provides. 

Informed Consent: Patient Rights 101

Informed consent isn’t just a best practice; it’s also the law. 

As a healthcare patient, you have specific rights in terms of how you’re cared for and the quality of care you receive. These are:

• Access to care: Patients have the right to emergency medical treatment, choice of provider, continuity of care, and access to their own medical records. 
• Privacy: Patients have the right to privacy in medical treatment, including control over who sees and uses their health information. 
• Informed treatment decisions: Patients have the right to clear and easy-to-understand information regarding recommended medical care, as well as the right to refuse treatment. 

When it comes to patient rights, informed consent is front and center, impacting not just a patient’s ability to consent to or refuse treatment but the wider question of access to care. 

3 Types of Consent in Healthcare

As they navigate the healthcare system, patients come across consent in three different ways:

• Informed consent
• Implied consent
• General consent

Informed Consent

At its most basic, the answer to the question of what informed consent is is as simple as a patient having the necessary information to say “yes” or “no” to a treatment. To give this level of consent, a patient must be awake, aware, competent, and making the decision free of coercion. 

Implied Consent

Implied consent in healthcare refers to consent that can be reasonably inferred by action – for example, a patient rolling up their sleeve for a blood draw. It relies on patients having access to their cognitive faculties and can be much trickier to prove than explicit informed consent out loud or in writing. 

General Consent

Consent patients provide upfront at a medical practice, usually by signing multiple paper or digital forms regarding consent to routine care and payment for that care. As part of general consent, patients should be provided with an outline of their privacy rights under HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act). 

Why Is Informed Consent Important?

Informed consent is important for both legal and ethical reasons. 

Without informed consent, patients would be mere bystanders in their medical decisions, undergoing treatments based on provider opinions rather than their own. Ultimately, the purpose of informed consent is to ensure voluntary participation in medical services, protecting patient autonomy and supporting patient rights in a multitude of ways. It is enforced by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Informed Consent Exceptions

Only with informed consent can a patient fully understand, ask questions, and give approval for a specific treatment plan. But what happens if a patient is unconscious and/or otherwise unable to give verbal or written consent?

There are certain exceptions to informed consent in healthcare, particularly:

• Medical emergencies where a patient is unable to communicate
• Court-ordered medical care
• Care of incapacitated patient, such as someone in a coma
• Voluntarily-waived consent

Language barriers, cultural differences, and time pressure can make it difficult to obtain informed consent, but are not exceptions to the rule. 

What is Informed Consent in Healthcare? Speak to a Medical Malpractice Attorney at No Cost to Learn More

If you or a loved one were harmed by a medical service for which you did not sufficiently consent, you may be entitled to compensation through a medical malpractice claim. Our personal injury attorneys have been helping Florida healthcare patients protect their rights for more than 30 years, and we understand the complex laws around informed consent. Call or fill out an online contact form to schedule a free case evaluation and get qualified legal support to protect your rights after negligent harm by a healthcare provider.