SIGNATURE NO LONGER MEANS CONSENT

A SIGNATURE on a medical form is no longer considered enough to gain a patient’s consent to an operation, according to official guidance.

Announced last week by the General Medical Council – the body that regulates medical practitioners – doctors must also engage in ‘meaningful dialogue tailored to the individual patient’s needs’.

The change, which comes into force next month, is the first made to the body’s ethical guidance since 2008, and is in response to several legal cases which have questioned the strength of written consent.

Medical ethicist and barrister Daniel Sokol – who accuses doctors of ‘rattling through consent’ – says patients cannot consent to treatment, even if it is in writing, if the procedure is not fully explained in relatable terms by a professional.

He adds: ‘Consent forms often contain medical language which patients don’t fully understand.’