Informed consent principles in the UK

The English Court of Appeal in a June 2018 judgment confirmed the principles relating to informed consent in medical malpractice claims. A woman had been suffering painful, heavy periods and lower back pain, for which she sought medical advice. After being given various treatment options, she chose to undergo a total abdominal hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy. She was insistent on undergoing this procedure despite being warned by her doctor that it was ‘a very major surgical procedure’ and that ‘our recommendation would be to try less invasive methods’. It had been noted that the risks associated with the procedure had been explained to the woman. As a consequence of the operation, the woman suffered nerve damage with serious and permanent pain. The woman then sued the Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, on the basis that she had not been adequately warned of the risk of chronic or nerve-related post-operative pain resulting from…

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