Informed Consent Confidentiality

In the U.S. healthcare system, there is a requirement to obtain consent before performing any type of "risky" procedure. This condition stems from unethical procedures performed by physicians in the past (Pozgar, 2016). There are different components of obtaining consent, but prior to any type of procedure being performed, the provider is required to obtain informed consent.

The Doctor and Patient relationship aspect of Medicine has changed drastically in the last twenty years. It has evolved from paternalism (the doctor makes the decision for the patient) to shared decision making where the patient is considered an equal partner in his/her own health related decisions. Informed consent is the cornerstone for this view. When a patient or a research subject makes an autonomous decision after understanding, the risks and benefits involved with the decision is Informed consent. Complete Informed consent covers the following components: competency, disclosure, comprehension and voluntary. Competency refers to the requirement for the individual to be of legal age and be mentally competent to understand the process.

American Psychological Association. (n.d.) Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct. Retrieved December 7, 2015, from http://www.apa.org/ethics/code/

An informed consent is the sovereign act by the patient or a research subject to authorize a healthcare professional to perform a medical procedure. It means that patients must be briefed on all the goals of the procedure, the methods to be used by the physician and all the risks that they might be subjected to while undergoing therapies/treatments. De Bord (2014), defines informed consent as “Informed consent is the process by which the treating health care provider discloses appropriate information to a competent patient so that the patient may make a voluntary choice to accept or refuse treatment” (as cited in Appelbaum, 2007). In this paper, I will argue that Jay Katz’s claim for the lack of genuine informed consent in healthcare field is firm by demonstrating and buttressing his claim. I will also pinpoint how Jay Katz’s argument is consistent with the medical professionals’ code of ethics

Informed consent explains in detail to all patients the potential risks involved, when moving forward with the procedure. This form of content has become the standard in daily practice at every medical institution. (Post, 2007) The federal government is pursuing a set of studies, that will permit researchers to conduct medical experiments without obtaining the patients consent. (Post, 2007)

Psychologists are committed to increasing scientific and professional knowledge of behaviour and people's understanding of themselves and others and to the use of such knowledge to improve the condition of individuals, organisations, and society (APA, 2010). The PSI preamble (2010) states “the authority of psychologists derives from the scientific methods of investigation on which their knowledge is based, and the ethics which govern all their professional activity. They accept that codes of ethics are necessary to protect the interest of clients and prevent misuse of psychological knowledge. The Ethics Code provides a common set of principles and standards upon which psychologists build their professional and scientific work. The following is a rough and general summary of the principles that are addressed by the APA, PSI and BPS;

Informed consent is the basis for all legal and moral aspects of a patient’s autonomy. Implied consent is when you and your physician interact in which the consent is assumed, such as in a physical exam by your doctor. Written consent is a more extensive form in which it mostly applies when there is testing or experiments involved over a period of time. The long process is making sure the patient properly understands the risk and benefits that could possible happen during and after the treatment. As a physician, he must respect the patient’s autonomy. For a patient to be an autonomous agent, he must have legitimate moral values. The patient has all the rights to his medical health and conditions that arise. When considering

Informed consent is a phrase often used in law to indicate that the consent a person gives meets certain minimum standards. In order to give informed consent, the individual concerned must have adequate reasoning faculties and be in possession of all relevant facts at the time consent is given. Impairments to reasoning and judgment which may make it impossible for someone to give informed

As per Beal & Lewis, 2014 Informed consent is a process of education and the correct education is a key to the ability to provide consent.

In their article, “The Concept of Informed Consent,” Faden and Beauchamp give two varying definitions of informed consent, namely sense one and sense two. Sense one is defined as autonomous authorization, meaning that the patient or subject agrees and then gives authority to move forward with a proposal (Vaughn 191). The authors give four conditions that have to be met for informed consent to be recognized: the patient has to understand the information presented to her, there should be no manipulation or coercion, and she has to intentionally give her authorization (Vaughn 191). Faden and Beauchamp also note that the fourth condition, where the patient gives her authorization, is pivotal in this sense since it differentiates autonomous authorization

Obtaining an informed consent is a vital part of current health care. This document lists out several key pieces of information for both the patient, Provider, and the ancillary staff that also access the document during the procedure process. However, obtaining informed consent has not always been the practice norm and in research, informed consent carries different specifications.

The informed consent process involves establishing the basic framework between a therapist and their client that serves as an ethical and legal requirement as well as the formation of a basic working partnership between a therapist and their client. The informed consent is essentially an informational exchange between a therapist and a client that outlines the process of therapy. It also allows the client to be informed of their rights in order to make conscientious and thoughtful decisions related to their therapy. An interesting fact about informed consent is that is it can be provided in written and oral form, or a combination of the two (Corey, 2013).

Ethical Principles of Psychologists and the Code of Conduct are very important guidelines in any workforce. “These guidelines serve a purpose to guide and inspire psychologists toward the very highest ethical ideals of their profession” (APA, 2002). There are five major parts of the Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct guidelines. These parts include, Beneficence, Responsibility, Integrity, Justice, Respect for People 's Rights and Dignity. These are also known as principals that start from A, and end in E. All of these guidelines are to be obeyed when working in our chosen career.

Many will agree with the process of informed consent. Informed consent requires research investigators to provide potential subjects with a clear appreciation and understanding of the fact, implications, and future consequences

Informed consent is a process in which a patient gives consent to treatment after a healthcare provider discusses information related to the procedure so that the patient can make an educated decision whether to refuse or accept treatment (Hall, Prochazka, & Fink, 2012). For healthcare personnel, informed consent is a legal procedure that is used to protect the patient against assault and battery through unwanted medical interventions. This document provides legal protection to health care personnel by indicating that the patient was made aware of the procedure and its risks and that they choose to do the procedure willingly. Ultimately, however, informed consent is used to respect and promote an individuals’ autonomy as well as to protect the individual from unwanted harm. For this paper, we will compare the clinical practice of informed consent and the evidence that supports this practice.