The Truth about Medical Consent
Balancing the need to maintain patients' hope with the imperative of informed consent for medical procedures is a delicate task. Understanding why many doctors struggle with it is the first step toward ensuring that patients' consent truly is informed.
LONDON – Is it acceptable for doctors to withhold information from their patients? Some claim that it is not only acceptable; it is desirable. Hope, they argue, is critical to aid recovery, and a bleak diagnosis should not be allowed to kill it.