BMJ 1995;310:936 (8 April)

Letters

GMC prefers "prudent patient" test

EDITOR,--Failure to obtain consent for rectal administration of postoperative analgesia, as described by John Mitchell,1 is common clinical practice in day case units. I wonder how the professional conduct committee of the General Medical Council would have responded if the patient had complained of pain at the site of an unexpected intramuscular injection of the same active substance: did the route of administration influence the decision making process?

The practitioner was found guilty of serious professional misconduct in that, among other things, "he . . . did not explain to the patient what form the general anaesthetic would take." Many practitioners had thought that the Bolam test was to be applied in deciding the amount of information to be given to patients.2 The "prudent patient" test seems to be preferred by the General Medical Council. This implies that the patient must be given such information about the procedure, side effects, . . . [Full text of this article]


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Relevant Article

A fundamental problem of consent
John Mitchell
BMJ 1995 310: 43-46. [Extract] [Full Text]

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