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In its most important role in bioethics, informed consent is a legitimacy requirement for certain actions. Inadequately informed consent makes certain intrusions impermissible.
Informed consent is the process by which the treating health care provider discloses appropriate information to a competent patient so that the patient may make a voluntary choice to accept or refuse treatment.
Informed consent must begin with a concise and focused presentation of the key information that is most likely to assist a prospective subject or legally authorized representative in understanding the reasons why one might or might not want to participate in the research.
To define “informed consent” properly, appropriate criteria of information and consent must be identified. If overdemanding criteria such as “full disclosure and complete understanding” are adopted, then an informed consent becomes impossible to obtain.
Informed consent ensures that patients understand the risks, benefits, alternatives, and potential consequences of medical interventions, allowing them to weigh their options and participate actively in their treatment plans.
This principle is the basis for the practice of "informed consent" in the physician/patient transaction regarding health care. (See also Informed Consent.) Case 1
Informed consent requirements are ubiquitous in health care, and they are regarded as a cornerstone of ethical medical practice. It is also often treated as a truism that these requirements are to be justified by the principle of respect for autonomy.