Informed consent in cardiology

Abstract

The article dwells upon informed consent (IC) in medical practice. The authors underline- after an analysis of ethical models of physician-patient relationship (PPR): paternalism, autonomy, and beneficence - the theoretical and practical difficulties that prevent the carrying out of IC. The article examines research on patients in the cardiology and cardio surgery departments of four Italian hospitals in Rome. The aim of the study was the way of IC achievement and the influence of the information on the emotional status of the patient. A questionnaire was given to 54 patients. The data show that most of the interviewed people consent in writing to the treatment proposed by the physician, but the quality of information is inadequate. PPR is again paternalistic and IC is understood as a necessity to avoid legal questions and not as a patient's right. The sick lives in a particular psychologic condition: he's afraid of one's own health and pain. Therefore, it's necessary to act with the greatest act in breaking the news to patients. The physician must guide the patient to make the best decision about diagnosis and treatment. The PPR based on dialogue and confidence is absolutely necessary, but the Hippocratic model of medicine is not obsolete: it needs to conciliate with the respect for patients' autonomy.