Jones and Bartlett Publishers Answer Questions 13
Jones and Bartlett Publishers
here are 13 questions
6 questions from chapter 13 which is in the first powerpoint
and 7 questions form chapter 15 in the second powerpoint
each question must be answered with example and support from 250 to 400 words each answer
Chapter 13
Patient Consent
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
LEARNING OBJECTIVES – I
- Explain the concept of informed consent.
- Discuss the difference between verbal, written, and implied consent.
- Describe the role of the patient, physician, nurse, and hospital in informed consent.
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
LEARNING OBJECTIVES – II

- Explain how consent differs between competent patients, minors, guardians, and incompetent patients.
- Discuss under what circumstances a patient might refuse treatment.
- Explain the available defenses for defendants as it relates to informed consent.
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Consent
- Voluntary agreement by a person who possesses sufficient mental capacity to make an intelligent choice to allow something proposed by another to be performed on himself or herself.
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Forms of Consent
- Express consent
- Verbal
- Written
- Implied consent
- Act or silence raising presumption consent has been authorized
- e.g., treatment of accident victim
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Informed Consent
- Legal doctrine where a patient has right to know potential risks, benefits, & alternatives of a proposed procedure.
- Patient has absolute right to know about & select from available treatment options.
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Physicians
Informed Consent
- Informed consent is predicated on the duty of the physician to disclose sufficient info to enable the patient to evaluate proposed medical or surgical procedures before submitting to them.
- Physicians expected disclose risks, benefits, & alternatives of recommended procedures.
- Disclosure: what a reasonable person would consider material to a decision of whether to or not to undergo treatment.
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Nurses
Informed Consent

- Nurses most cases have no duty to
- advise a patient as to a surgical procedure to be employed
- may confirm physician has explained the procedure
- witness patient’s signature on consent form
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Hospitals
Informed Consent
- Not generally responsible for informing patients as to the risks, benefits and alternatives.
- Some cases in which hospitals have a duty
- CT Scans
- MRI Imaging
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Patients
Informed Consent
- Patient’s ability to:
- understand risks, benefits, & alternatives
- evaluate info provided by the physician
- express his or her treatment preferences
- voluntarily make decisions regarding his or her treatment plan
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Course of Treatment
Patient’s Decision – I
Elderly woman living alone fell & fractured her hip. An orthopedic surgeon reviewed the patient’s condition & decided that rather than utilizing a pinning procedure for her hip, it would be better to adopt a conservative course of treatment, bed rest.
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Course of Treatment
Patient’s Decision – II
- Prior to her injury, plaintiff maintained an independent style of living.
- Expert testimony at trial indicated that bed rest was an inappropriate treatment.
- Was the patient successful for not being informed as to alternatives courses of treatment?
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Yes!
Court’s Decision
- Court held that it is necessary to advise a patient when considering alternative courses of treatment. The physician should have explained medically reasonable invasive & noninvasive alternatives, including risks & likely outcomes of those alternatives, even when the chosen course is noninvasive.
−Matthies v. Mastromonaco
© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Lack of Consent – I
Patient had multiple medical diagnoses. Her physician, Dr. Sottiurai, ordered bilateral arteriograms to determine cause of the patient’s impaired circulation. De La Ronde Hospital could not accommodate Sottiurai’s request & patient was transferred to Dr. Lang, a radiologist at St. Jude Hospital.
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Lack of Consent – II
Lang performed a femoral arteriogram, not the bilateral brachial arteriogram ordered by Sottiurai. The patient was prepared for transfer back to De La Ronde Hospital. Shortly after the ambulance departed, patient suffered a seizure in the ambulance & was returned to St. Jude. Riser’s condition deteriorated & died 11 days later.
- What did the trial court determine?
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Trial Court Decision

- The district court ruled for the plaintiffs, awarding damages in the amount of $50,000 for Riser’s pain and suffering and $100,000 to each child. Lang appealed.
- On appeal, what did the appeals court determine?
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Appeals Court’s Decision
- The Court of Appeal held that Lang breached the standard of care by subjecting the patient to a procedure that would have no practical benefit to the patient, that Lang failed to obtain informed consent from the patient.
−Riser v. American Medican Intern, Inc.
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Information to be Disclosed – I
- Physician should provide as much information about treatment options as necessary based on a patient’s personal understanding of physician’s explanation of risks of treatment & probable consequences of treatment.
- Needs of each patient can vary depending on age, maturity, & mental status.
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Information to be Disclosed – II
- Individual responsible for obtaining consent must weigh importance of giving full disclosure to the patient against likelihood such disclosure will adversely affect the patient’s decision.
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Information to be Disclosed – III
- Courts generally utilize an “objective” or “subjective” test
- to determine if a patient would have refused treatment if the physician had provided adequate information
- as to the risks, benefits, & alternatives of the procedure.
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Objective Test
- Take into account characteristics of the plaintiff
- idiosyncrasies, fears, age, medical condition, and religious belief
- Must show that a “reasonable person” would not have undergone a procedure if properly informed.
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Subjective test
- Relies on credibility of the patient’s testimony
- Patients must testify & prove they would not have consented to the procedure(s) had they been advised of the risks.
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Adequacy of Consent
- Patient understand risks, benefits, & alternatives
- Evaluate the information provided
- Express treatment preferences
- voluntarily make decisions regarding treatment plan
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Written Consent Describes – I
- Nature of the patient’s illness
- Procedure consented to
- Risks & probable consequences of the procedure
- Probability that the proposed procedure will be successful
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Written Consent Describes – II
- Alternative methods of treatment
- Associated risks & benefits of each
- Indication the patient understands nature of proposed treatment
- Signatures dated & signed
- patient
- physician
- witnesses
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Special Forms of Consent
- Consent for Routine Procedures
- Consent for Specific Procedures
- Implied Consent
- Statutory Consent
- Judicial Consent
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Statutory Consent
- Consent generally assumed
- Ambulance Care
- Good Samaritan Statutes
- Emergency Departments
- When patient clinically unable to give consent
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Judicial Consent
- May be periodically necessary
- When alternatives exhausted
- 2nd opinions by consulting physicians helpful
- On-call legal advice should be sought
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Who May Consent
- Competent patients
- Guardianship
- Consent for minors
- Incompetent patients
- Limited Power of Attorney
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Right to Refuse Treatment
- For any or no reason
- Mere whim
- Religious Beliefs
- Blood or blood products
- Impatience
- Text Case: Good People Bad Decisions
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Release Form
- Completed release provides documented evidence of a patient’s refusal to consent to a recommended treatment.
- Patient’s refusal to consent to treatment, for any reason, religious or otherwise, should be noted in the medical record.
- A release form should be executed.
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Informed Consent Defenses
- Risk not disclosed is commonly known.
- Patient assured practitioner he would undergo treatment regardless of the risk.
- Consent not reasonably possible.
- Patent did not want to know about the risks.
- Physician disclosed what he considerable reasonable
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© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
Ethics
Informed Consent
- Individual Autonomy
- Informed consent protects the basic right of the patient to make the ultimate informed decision regarding the course of treatment to which he or she knowledgeably consents.
© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
REVIEW QUESTIONS – I
1. Who should be responsible for reviewing with the patient the risks, benefits, and alternatives of a proposed diagnostic test or treatment?
2. Describe what information a patient should be provided prior to undergoing a risky procedure in order for consent to be informed.
3. Why is it important to obtain consent from a patient prior to proceeding with a risky procedure?
© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
REVIEW QUESTIONS – II
4. Can a patient consent to a procedure and then withdraw it?
5. Can a parent refuse to consent to a lifesaving procedure for his or her child? Discuss your answer.
6. Discuss how much information is sufficient in order for informed consent to be effective (e.g., consider your answer here from both the objective and subjective forms of consent).
© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
REVIEW QUESTIONS – III
7. Discuss the implications of the following statement: “Patients are generally persons unlearned in the medical sciences and, therefore, except in rare instances, the knowledge of patient and physician is not in parity.”
© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
© 2014 Jones and Bartlett Publishers
1. Who should be responsible for reviewing with the patient the risks, benefits, and alternatives of a proposed diagnostic test or treatment?
2. Describe what information a patient should be provided prior to undergoing a risky procedure in order for consent to be informed.
3. Why is it important to obtain consent from a patient prior to proceeding with a risky procedure?
4. Can a patient consent to a procedure and then withdraw it?
5. Can a parent refuse to consent to a lifesaving procedure for his or her child? Discuss your answer.
6. Discuss how much information is sufficient in order for informed consent to be effective (e.g., consider your answer here from both the objective and subjective forms of consent).
7. Discuss the implications of the following statement: “Patients are generally persons unlearned in the medical sciences and, therefore, except in rare instances, the knowledge of patient and physician is not in parity.”
Chapter 15
End-of-Life Issues
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
- Discuss the human struggle to survive and the right to autonomous decision-making.
- Describe how patient autonomy has been impacted by case law and legislative enactments.
- Discuss the following concepts: preservation of life with limits, euthanasia, advance directives, futility of treatment, withholding and withdrawal of treatment, and do-not-resuscitate orders.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES – II
- Discuss the purpose of an ethics committee and its consultative role in the delivery of patient care.
- Explain end-of-life issues as they relate to autopsy, organ donations, research experimentation, and clinical trials.
- Describe how human genetics and stem cell research can have an impact on end-of-life issues.
Dreams of Immortality
- Human struggle to survive
- Desire to prevent & cure illness
- Advances in medicine & power to prolong life
- Process of dying can be prolonged
- Ethical & legal issues have increased
- involving entire life span, from right to be born to right to die
Scope of Ethical Issues
- Entire Life Span
- The Right to be Born
- The Right to Die, &
- Everything in between, e.g.,
- to choose treatment
- to refuse treatment for oneself
- to refuse treatment for another
- to limit the suffering one would endure
Ethical Dilemmas Arise
When values,
rights,
duties
& loyalties conflict.
Autonomy
- Right of a person to make one’s own decisions.
- Patient has right to accept or refuse care even if it is beneficial to saving his or her life.
- Autonomy may be inapplicable in certain cases
- affected by one’s disabilities, mental status, maturity, or capacity to make decisions.
Quinlan court
Relying on: Roe v. Wade
- Announced the constitutional right to privacy protects a patient’s right to self-determination.
- State’s interest did not justify interference with her right to refuse treatment.
- Quinlan’s father was appointed her legal guardian
Cruzan Case
- Supreme Court held that right-to-die should be decided pursuant to state law, subject to a due-process liberty interest, and in keeping with state constitutional law.
- Cruzans returned to Missouri probate court:
- Judge Charles Teel authorized physicians to remove the feeding tubes from Nancy.
- testimony presented demonstrated clear & convincing evidence Nancy would not have wanted to live in a persistent vegetative state.
Legislative Response: Patient Self-Determination Act of 1990
- Requires healthcare organizations to explain to patients their legal right to direct their own care
- Right to refuse medical treatment
- Right to formulate advance directives
- Right to appoint surrogate decision-maker
- Federal reimbursement requires compliance with Act
Preservation of Life
- Medical ethics does not require patient’s life be preserved at all cost under all circumstances.
- Ethical integrity
- of a profession is not compromised by a patient’s decision to forego medical care.
- Right to body integrity.
Euthanasia
- Mercy killing of hopelessly ill, injured or incapacitated
- Active
- intentional commission of an act, such as giving patient lethal drug
- Passive
- occurs when life-saving treatment (such as a respirator) is withdrawn or withheld
Physician-Assisted Suicide
- Oregon’s Death with Dignity Act of 1994
- physician-assisted suicide became a legal medical option for the terminally ill residents
- U.S. Supreme Court, in two unanimous & separate decisions, ruled
- laws in Washington & New York prohibiting assisted suicide are constitutional
- yet U.S. Supreme Court also ruled that states can allow doctors to assist in suicide of their terminally ill patients.
Advance Directives – I
- Making Preferences Known
- Obligation to make medical preferences known to treating physician.
- Any glimmer of uncertainty as to a patient’s desires in an emergency situation should be resolved in favor of preserving life.
Advance Directives – II
- Living Will
- Health Care Proxy
- Determining Incapacity
- Agent’s Rights
- Durable Power of Attorney
- Guardianship
- Substituted Judgment
Futility of Treatment
- Physician recognizes effect of treatment will be of no benefit to the patient.
- Morally, a physician has a duty to inform patient when there is little likelihood of success.
- Determination as to futility of medical care is a scientific decision.
Withholding & Withdrawing Treatment – I
- Withholding of treatment
- decision not to initiate treatment or medical intervention for the patient.
- Withdrawal of treatment
- decision to discontinue treatment or medical interventions for the patient.
Withholding & Withdrawing
Treatment – II
- When
- Patient in a terminal condition & there is reasonable expectation of imminent death.
- Patient a non-cognitive state with no reasonable possibility of regaining cognitive function.
- Restoration of cardiac function will last but for a brief period.
DNR Orders
- DNR orders written by a physician, indicate that in event of cardiac or respiratory arrest, no resuscitative measures should be used to revive patient.
Ethics Committee
- Committee offering objective counsel when facing difficult health care issues & decisions resource to patients, families, & staff.
- Includes wide range of community leaders.
- Analyzes ethical dilemmas, advise & educate health care providers, patients, & families.
- Assists patients & family in coming to consensus with options that best meet patient’s care needs.
Ethics Committee Function
- Policy & procedure development
- Educational role
- Consultative role
- Political Advocacy
Autopsy
- Postmortem examinations to determine cause of death.
- Add to medical knowledge.
- Necessary for criminal activity or suspicious deaths.
- Deaths during surgery are reportable.
- Consent required.
Organ Donations – I
- Federal regulations
- hospitals to have, & implement, written protocols regarding organ procurement.
- notification duties concerning informing families of potential donors.
- Discretion & sensitivity in dealing with families.
Organ Donations – II
- Education
- facilitate timely donation & transplantation
- Uniform Anatomical Gift Act
- allows a person to make a decision to donate organs at the time of death and allows potential donors.
Organ Donations – III
- Millions of people suffer from kidney disease, but in 2007 there were just 64,606 kidney-transplant operations in the entire world. In the U.S. alone, 83,000 people wait on the official kidney-transplant list. But just 16,500 people received a kidney transplant in 2008, while almost 5,000 died waiting for one.
—Alex Tabarrok, The Wall Street Journal, January 8, 2010
Research, Experimentation
& Clinical Trials
- Combination of federal & state regulations
- Office of Research Integrity
- Institutional Review Board
- Informed Consent
- Duty to Warn
- Risks, benefits, alternatives
- Food & Drug Administration
Organ Human Genetics – I
- Study of inheritance as it occurs in human beings, includes stem cell research, clinical genetics (e.g., genetic disease markers) & molecular genetics.
- Genetic markers are genes or DNA sequences with a known location on a chromosome that can be used to
- identify specific cells & diseases
- individuals & species
Organ Human Genetics – II
- Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 prohibits
- discrimination on the basis of genetic information with respect to the availability of health insurance & employment
- employers from using an individual’s genetic information when making hiring, firing, job placement, or promotion decisions
STEM CELL RESEARCH
- Use of embryonic stem cells to create organs and various body tissues.
- highly controversial, involving religious beliefs and fears as to how far scientists might go in their attempt to create, e.g., another human being.
When We Finally Know
REVIEW QUESTIONS – I
Discuss how one caregiver’s beliefs can be in conflict with another when making end-of-life decisions. Consider topics discussed on morality, virtues, situational ethics, autonomy, and medical paternalism when framing your answer.
Discuss the ever-expanding role of ethics committees, including internal operational issues & external influences that affect internal operations.
What are the differences between allowing a patient to die and physician-assisted suicide?
REVIEW QUESTIONS – II
Examine the statement: “The inherent risk is that society’s faith in doctors as healers would become subverted if doctors participate in physician-assisted suicide.“
Constitutionally, what gives patients the right to self-determination?
Explain why you think the Schiavo case is an example of legislating morality.
1. Discuss how one caregiver’s beliefs can be in conflict with another when making end-of-life decisions. Consider topics discussed on morality, virtues, situational ethics, autonomy, and medical paternalism when framing your answer.
2. Discuss the ever-expanding role of ethics committees, including internal operational issues & external influences that affect internal operations.
3. What are the differences between allowing a patient to die and physician-assisted suicide?
4. Examine the statement: “The inherent risk is that society’s faith in doctors as healers would become subverted if doctors participate in physician-assisted suicide.“
5. Constitutionally, what gives patients the right to self-determination?
6. Explain why you think the Schiavo case is an example of legislating morality.