Patient Perception of Disclosure Performance of Informed Consent Elements in the Preanesthesia Interview
Abstract
Adequate disclosure during the informed consent process ensures equalization of the practitioner/patient relationship and patient decision-making rights. The purpose of this study was to provide a descriptive analysis of the extent to which patients report that the elements of informed consent (nature of the proposed anesthesia, benefits of the proposed anesthesia, material risks of the proposed anesthesia, and alternative anesthetic modalities) were discussed in the preanesthesia interview. A survey composed of 21 questions pertaining to demography and informed consent elements was devised and administered to 53 patients immediately following their preanesthesia interview. The nature, benefits, and risks of the proposed anesthetic were discussed more than average or in detail more than 90%, 81%, and 90% respectively. However, alternative anesthetic modalities were not or only somewhat discussed 30% of the time. This study found that during the preanesthesia interview, the type, benefits, and risks of the anesthetic were well discussed with the patient, but that patients do not perceive that anesthetic choices were being offered. A low statistical inverse correlation of -0.217 was found between the total score for the informed consent elements and the highest educational level attained. This suggests that the higher the patient educational level, the more inadequate was the perceived level of anesthetic disclosure by the anesthesia provider. A low statistical correlation of 0.370 was found between those identified by the patient as the provider and the actual provider. This indicates that patients are not clear on whether their provider is a nurse anesthetist or an anesthesiologist.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 1997
- Accession Number
- AD1011648
Entities
People
- Bradley J. Hartgerink
Organizations
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences