Emergency Consent Form For Minor – Everyone should be able to make informed decisions regarding their health. The medical procedures can be injurious, and patients must be able decide, based on known risks, how their bodies will be treated. Thus, before medical professionals are allowed to treat patients, they have to obtain the process of informed consent.
The informed consent requirement is legal requirement under which a patient has been provided with a full and complete description of his or her physical health and the recommended treatment by the physician in charge. Once this information is received patients must be able to give the physician their consent to treat before any form of treatment can be provided. Without the patient’s informed consent an health care professional cannot offer treatment.
Decision Making Capacity
In some cases patients lack the capabilities to fully understand their options in terms of treatment and the risks/benefits associated with each. In some instances patients may not be able to communicate their choices to health care professionals. Under these circumstances the patient is considered to not possess adequate decision making capacity. An individual from the family or court appointed representative in this case, can make informed consent on behalf of the patient.
Patients that are strongly influenced by their emotions, such as anxiety or fear for instance can be deemed to not having the capacity to make decisions. Patients who are in the state of unconscious cannot make decisions on independently, and other people have to give consent for treatment instead.
Items in an Emergency Consent Form For Minor
There are certain elements that are commonly included in informed consent forms:
The patient’s medical condition or diagnosis
The treatment recommended by the physician in charge
The risks and benefits associated with this procedure
Alternative treatments that are available, as well as their benefits and risks
The potential risks and rewards with refusing treatment at all
The items should not only be documented in a written document however, they must be discussed with the patient. So, he can fully comprehend the particulars of the case and will receive immediate responses to any issues that may have arisen.