Medical Treatment and Your Consent
Medical treatment can come with risks, and it is important that medical professionals provide you with enough information beforehand to allow you to make an informed decision about your treatment. This is an important process and part of obtaining your consent to treatment.
What should be discussed?
When considering treatment, you must be informed about:
- Common and serious risks
- Alternative options
This usually means that you must be informed of material risks and given enough information to make an informed decision. Alternatives to surgery or medication can often be explained, along with comparative risks and benefits.
It is important that you are aware of the options available and the risks so you can understand, decide upon, and give your consent for the treatment that you will receive.
Patients often sign consent forms for treatment, but it is essential that the consent process is appropriate and includes an explanation of the material risks. Just because a form is signed does not necessarily mean that informed consent was given if you did not understand the material risks or alternatives.
When Things Go Wrong with Medical Treatment
Medical treatment is often excellent. However, sometimes, it can go wrong and lead to devastating consequences. If appropriate information was not provided beforehand, this may result in a medical negligence claim, which would have affected the treatment decision.
For a claim to be viable, it’s essential to demonstrate that the patient was not adequately informed. This lack of information significantly impacted their decision-making process. In other words, if the patient would have chosen a different option had they been fully informed. In this case, a claim may be possible.
This can happen in many different circumstances. For example, if a patient is to undergo surgery, alternatives should be discussed, together with the comparative risks. If this does not happen, and the surgery goes wrong, this may give rise to a claim if the patient would have chosen a different treatment option.
This is a complex area, and it is vital to seek legal advice.
Medical Negligence Claims: Can I Get Help?
It is important to obtain specialist legal advice about medical negligence claims as soon as possible as strict time limits can apply.
At PHH Solicitors, we have a specialist department of medical negligence solicitors that can assist you. We offer ‘no win, no fee’ funding for medical negligence claims. Please contact our Fleetwood office on 01253 778231 for a free no obligation consultation.