W3 Exploring Informed Consent

Post#1 by Euphemia Onwuegbuchu – Exploring Informed Consent

What is the purpose of informed consent?

Informed consent is defined as a legal and ethical term used to obtain a client’s permission or willingness to participate in a proposed medical or psychotherapeutic procedure or research project, or clinical study (Kadam, 2017). Inform consent advises the client of the patient’s right, therapist’s practice, policies, state, and federal laws. It improves patient-physician/clinician communication. Though informed consent is a legal document, it should be welcoming, comforting, and easy to comprehend.

As a legal tender, it protects both the client and the clinician from assault and prevents unwanted procedures or therapies. The ethical purpose of informed consent is to preserve autonomous decision-making while supporting patient-defined goals. For administrative compliance, informed consent serves as a document proving the involvement of the concerned parties and provides adequate precautions to ensure nominal completion of ethical and legal requirements (Hall et al., 2012).

What are the main components of informed consent?

Informed consent has processes revolving around exchanging information, dialogue, and discussion between a client and a clinician or therapist. One of the challenging aspects of informed consent is the successful communication of risks and benefits of procedure, treatments, research, or any other eventuality. The risks and benefits of any therapy must be communicated to the clients at their level of understanding and language. Treatment alternatives and emphasize the element of choice, if any, and the outcomes of the procedure, treatment, or research.

In psychotherapy, informed consent originates from the that individuals have the rights to freedom, autonomy, and human dignity that cannot be denied due to mental health status or condition. Another component of informed consent is evaluating the client’s ability to make the appropriate and competent decision with a clear understanding. Last but not least, a feature of informed consent is a declaration of willingness by signing the consent form or document. When they sign the document, they state that they have received appropriate information with clarity and voluntarily.

Most psychiatric mental health/psychotherapy therapy/ and counseling clinics and practices online have the practice techniques. All procedures, treatment, or counseling must be obtained first for all voluntary intakes, reasonable adults, and minors, whether voluntary or involuntary, must be signed by parents/guardians before commencing any treatment or counseling. For the involuntary intakes, a durable power of attorney document stating consent or guarding must be present.

Attached is a Pdf format sample of an informed consent form.

References

Hall, D. E., Prochazka, A. V., & Fink, A. S. (2012). Informed consent for clinical treatment. CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association journal = journal de l'Association medicale canadienne, 184(5), 533–540. https://doi.org/10.1503/cmaj.112120

Kadam R. A. (2017). Informed consent process: A step further towards making it meaningful! Perspectives in clinical research, 8(3), 107–112. https://doi.org/10.4103/picr.PICR_147_16

Regis college informed consent.pdf