Biomaterial Database

Informed consent: the nurse's dilemma. 1996

N Tabak

Department of Nursing, Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Israel.

The author builds upon the concept of informed consent whereby the patient agrees to undergo experimental medical procedures. Ideally, the doctor will inform the patient fully on the proposed treatment so as to assure the patient's right to participate intelligently and freely in the decisions regarding his treatment. The nurse is drawn into the doctor-patient relationship in cases where the patient seeks her counsel because he feels insufficiently informed by the doctor, or because the nurse becomes aware of inadequacies in the information-giving process. She is then faced by the nurse's dilemma: a conflict between the loyalties she owes to her patient and to her physician team mate. A work sheet is presented which can help the nurse decide upon the proper course of action in solving this dilemma, guided by her personal and professional beliefs and by specific ethical concepts in the Code for Nurses. Solution of the dilemma and attainment of informed consent requires willing cooperation between doctor and nurse. Both can develop the skills for imparting information to the patient under difficult conditions and for verifying its comprehension by the patient. Both must learn to respect the patient's decision and to temper their professional skills with sensitivity, a strong moral sense and a deep respect for their fellow human beings.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D007258	Informed Consent	Voluntary authorization, by a patient or research subject, with full comprehension of the risks involved, for diagnostic or investigative procedures, and for medical and surgical treatment.	Consent, Informed
D010344	Patient Advocacy	Promotion and protection of the rights of patients, frequently through a legal process.	Patient Ombudsmen,Patient Representatives,Clinical Ombudsman,Patient Ombudsman,Advocacy, Patient,Ombudsman, Clinical,Ombudsman, Patient,Ombudsmen, Patient,Patient Representative,Representative, Patient,Representatives, Patient
D011369	Professional-Patient Relations	Interactions between health personnel and patients.	Contacting Clients,Pharmacist-Patient Relations,Professional Patient Relationship,Client, Contacting,Clients, Contacting,Contacting Client,Pharmacist Patient Relations,Pharmacist-Patient Relation,Professional Patient Relations,Professional Patient Relationships,Professional-Patient Relation,Relation, Pharmacist-Patient,Relation, Professional-Patient,Relations, Pharmacist-Patient,Relations, Professional-Patient,Relationship, Professional Patient,Relationships, Professional Patient
D003657	Decision Making	The process of making a selective intellectual judgment when presented with several complex alternatives consisting of several variables, and usually defining a course of action or an idea.	Credit Assignment,Assignment, Credit,Assignments, Credit,Credit Assignments
D004993	Ethics, Nursing	The principles of proper professional conduct concerning the rights and duties of nurses themselves, their patients, and their fellow practitioners, as well as their actions in the care of patients and in relations with their families.	Nursing Ethics,Ethic, Nursing,Nursing Ethic
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D018570	Risk Assessment	The qualitative or quantitative estimation of the likelihood of adverse effects that may result from exposure to specified health hazards or from the absence of beneficial influences. (Last, Dictionary of Epidemiology, 1988)	Assessment, Risk,Benefit-Risk Assessment,Risk Analysis,Risk-Benefit Assessment,Health Risk Assessment,Risks and Benefits,Analysis, Risk,Assessment, Benefit-Risk,Assessment, Health Risk,Assessment, Risk-Benefit,Benefit Risk Assessment,Benefit-Risk Assessments,Benefits and Risks,Health Risk Assessments,Risk Analyses,Risk Assessment, Health,Risk Assessments,Risk Benefit Assessment,Risk-Benefit Assessments
D024802	Nurse's Role	The expected function of a member of the nursing profession.	Nurse's Scope of Practice,Nurses Role,Nurses' Role,Nurse Role,Nurse Scope, Practice,Nurse's Roles,Nurses Roles,Nurses Scope, Practice,Nurses' Roles,Practice Nurse's Scope,Practice Nurse's Scopes,Role, Nurse's,Role, Nurses,Role, Nurses',Roles, Nurse's,Roles, Nurses,Roles, Nurses'
D026684	Personal Autonomy	Self-directing freedom and especially moral independence. An ethical principle holds that the autonomy of persons ought to be respected. (Bioethics Thesaurus)	Autonomy, Personal,Free Will,Self Determination
D030881	Disclosure	Revealing of information, by oral or written communication.	Financial Disclosure,Information Disclosure,Disclosure, Financial,Disclosure, Information,Disclosures, Financial,Financial Disclosures