Informed Consent - Understanding the Importance of Voluntary Medical Decision-Making
Informed Consent FAQ
Is informed consent required in Australia?
There is case law in Australia about informed consent. Each state and territory also has guardianship and/or medical treatment legislation about capacity and consent. This legislation is diferent in each state and territory, and can be complex. Informed consent to the medical treatment of minors is also required.
What is the difference between informed consent and implied consent?
For example, if you have a fever and see a healthcare provider, your visit implies that you want treatment. Another example is if you break an ankle and visit a healthcare provider for crutches. Compared to informed consent, implied consent is less formal. It doesn’t need to be legally recorded.
Why is informed consent important?
At the Commission, we believe informed consent is a key quality and safety issue. Good clinical practice involves ensuring that informed consent is validly obtained and appropriately timed. Informed consent is integral to the right to information in the Australian Charter of Healthcare Rights, and recognised in Professional Codes of Conduct.
What is a consent form?
Most consent includes general risks, risks specific to the procedure, risks of no treatment and alternatives to treatment. Additionally, many consent forms express that there are no guarantees that the proposed procedure will provide a cure to the problem being addressed.
What is informed consent?
Informed consent is a person’s decision, given voluntarily, to agree to a healthcare treatment, procedure or other intervention that is made: Following the provision of accurate and relevant information about the healthcare intervention and alternative options available; and
How can a patient give informed consent?
For a patient to give informed consent about a certain intervention, there must be adequate disclosure by the health professional. This means giving the patient all the necessary information about their condition, all the possible management options available, and the benefits and risks associated with each of these options.
How do I give informed consent in Australia?
To give informed consent, you need to be given enough information about your options to make the right decision for you and your health. For consent to be legal in Australia, you must have legal capacity, give consent voluntarily and be given enough information about all your options to make an informed choice.
Does informed consent need to be sought?
A clinician proposing treatment or medical treatment for a person must presume that the person has capacity to give informed consent. However, informed consent does not need to be sought if the clinician reasonably considers the person does not have capacity at the time the particular decision needs to be made.
Informed Consent References
If you want to know more about Informed Consent, consider exploring links below:
What Is Informed Consent
- https://www.safetyandquality.gov.au/our-work/partnering-consumers/informed-consent
- https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/informed-consent
- https://legaldictionary.net/informed-consent/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK430827/
- https://www.healthline.com/health/informed-consent
- https://www.verywellhealth.com/understanding-informed-consent-2615507
- https://www.health.vic.gov.au/mental-health-and-wellbeing-act-handbook/supported-decision-making/informed-consent-and-presumption
- https://www.health.qld.gov.au/consent/abt_infrmd_cnsnt