Abstract
Informed consent (IC) is the process through which patients understand and agree to medical procedures. The informed consent process needs to fulfil two main purposes: (1) the moral and ethical right of autonomy and freedom of choice and (2) the legal authorisation for the proposed treatment. The IC is not simply a legal and ethical obligation; it is central factor in decisional process helping the patient arrive at a treatment decision. The competence is the most important element to obtain a valid informed consent. The majority of critically ill patients are naturally incompetent and not legally incompetent. This kind of patients has a temporarily or partially mental incapacity that requires a surrogate decision maker. The purpose of this chapter is to report the problems of IC in critically ill patients and to show the different national legislation about it.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Clark PA. Intensive care patients’ evaluations of the informed consent process. Dimens Crit Care Nurs. 2007;26:207–26.
Giampieri M. Communication and informed consent in elderly people. Minerva Anestesiol. 2012;78:236–42.
Zamperetti N, Latronico N. Critical research in critically ill patients: the situation of Italy. Intensive Care Med. 2008;34:1330–2.
Zamperetti N, Conti G. New regulations for the care of the critically ill patients in Italy. Intensive Care Med. 2004;30:1660–1.
Lautrette A, Peigne V, Watts J, Souweine B, Azoulay E. Surrogate decision makers for incompetent ICU patients: a European perspective. Curr Opin Crit Care Med. 2008;14:714–9.
Li LLM, Cheong KYP, Yaw LK, Liu EHC. The accuracy of surrogate decisions in intensive care scenarios. Anaesth Intensive Care. 2007;35:46–51.
Mehta S, Quittinat Pelletier F, Brown M, Ethier C, Wells D, Burry L, Macdonald R. Why substitute decision makers provide or decline consent for ICU research studies: a questionnaire study. Intensive Care Med. 2012;38:47–54.
Manthous CA, DeGirolamo A, Haddad C, Adjepong YA. Informed consent for medical procedures. Chest. 2003;124:1978–84.
Davis N, Pohlman A, Gehlbach B, Kress JP, et al. Improving the informed consent in the critically ill. JAMA. 2003;289:1963–8.
Stuke L, Jennings A, Gunst M, et al. Universal consent practice in academic intensive care units (ICUs). J Intensive Care Med. 2010;25:46–52.
Vargas M, Servillo G, Antonelli M, Brunetti I, De Stefano F, Putensen C, Pelosi P. Informed consent for tracheostomy procedures in intensive care unit: an Italian survey. Minerva Anestesiol. 2013;79:741–9.
Cheung NH, Napolitano LM. Tracheotomy: epidemiology, indications, timing, technique and outcomes. Respir Care. 2014;59:895–915.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Vargas, M., Marra, A., Servillo, G., Pelosi, P. (2016). Clinical Practice of Informed Consent for Percutaneous Tracheostomy. In: Servillo, G., Pelosi, P. (eds) Percutaneous Tracheostomy in Critically Ill Patients. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-22300-1_16
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-22300-1_16
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-22299-8
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-22300-1
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)