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- Panel Sparks Controversy Again with New Prostate Cancer Screening Guidelines
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What is informed consent?
A: Informed consent is the number one defense to medical malpractice cases. Informed consent means that the physician informed the patient about the risks and complications of an operation and the patient willingly consented to those risks. If the patient is informed of the risks of an operation and gives "informed consent" to the operation, then the physician cannot be faulted for the bad outcome of the operation.
Informed consent is most common in cases where a patient has a bad outcome after an operation. For example, a patient has an operation on his back and after the operation, his pain and limitation in his back is ten times worse than before the operation. The patient blames the physician for the bad outcome and wants to sue.
When a new client calls me with a bad outcome after an operation, my first question is: Did you sign an informed consent document before the operation? In 99% of cases, the new client's response is: "I signed a document, but I didn't read it." Your failure to read the informed consent document is not an acceptable excuse for you. In this scenario, the defense will be that the patient was informed of the risks and complications of the operation and consented to those risks. This is very good defense and a case that I would never accept.
Here's my advice to clients who are about to undergo an operation: Do not wait until the morning of the operation to read the informed consent document. Insist upon a meeting with the surgeon before the day of the operation to discuss the risks of the operation. Make sure you ask the surgeon whether there is a significant risk that the operation will not succeed or that your symptoms will actually be worse after the operation. Also, review the informed consent document with the surgeon before the day of the operation. If the surgeon refuses to meet with you to discuss the risks and complications of the operation, cancel the operation and find a new surgeon! This is not a doctor that you want operating on you.
It is your responsibility as a patient to be fully informed of the risks of the operation. If you don't insist upon a meeting with your surgeon to discuss these risks, no one else will. Take action to protect your rights.
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You will not be another of the 98,000 victims of medical malpractice in the United States in 2009 if you read my FREE BOOK. I have a book that will tell you why most victims of medical malpractice never recover a penny. If you are the victim of medical malpractice, we will rush this free, valuable information so you know what to do. If you don't call now, you have only yourself to blame.
You will never have to worry about medical malpractice again if you call this toll-free number, 866-889-6882, for your free book, The Seven Deadly Mistakes of Malpractice Victims, and an audio CD of the book, or you can request the book here and the book will be rushed to you immediately at no cost.
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John H. Fisher
130 North Front Street
Kingston, New York 12402-3058
Phone: 518.265.9131
Fax: 845-331-2004
Toll Free: 866.889.6882
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John H. Fisher
130 North Front Street
Kingston, New York 12402-3058
Phone: 518.265.9131
Fax: 845-331-2004
Toll Free: 866.889.6882
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