Health Sciences 2610F/G Chapter Notes - Chapter 2: Forego, Paternalism, Fiduciary

• School: Western University
• Department: Health Sciences
• Course: Health Sciences 2610F/G
• Professor: Ken Kirkwood

Document Summary

The hippocratic model of medicine was paternalistic one. It is a practical application of the principle of respect for patient autonomy: a patient must receive adequate medical information on which to make a decision about whether to accept or refuse treatment. To consent freely, a patient must be of sound mind and must not be subject to many coercion or undue influence: the term informed consent became an established law after the case of natanson v. Informed consent is characterized by mutual respect and shared decision-making: the greater the level of risk in refusing a treatment, the higher the level of competence should be for the patient to make the decision. When a patient"s decision to forego treatment entails a significant risk of harm to himself or others, the threshold of competence necessary to uphold patient autonomy should be high.