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Professional guidance
Seeking patients' consent: the ethical considerations,GMC, November 1998
The guidance sets out what should be considered in determinining what is in a patient's best interests
2.5 'In deciding what options may be reasonably considered as being in the best interests of a patient who lacks capacity to decide, you should take into account:
- options for treatment or investigation which are clinically indicated;
- any evidence of the patient's previously expressed preferences, including an advance statement;
- your own and the health care team's knowledge of the patient's background, such as cultural, religious or employment considerations;
- views about the patient's preferences given by a third party who may have other knowledge of the patient, for example the patient's partner, family, care, tutor-dative (Scotland) or a person with parental responsibility;
- which option least restricts the patient's future choices, where more than one option (including non-treatment) seems reasonable in the patient's best interest. '
Consent toolkit, 2nd Edition, BMA, February 2003
The Tool Kit consists of a series of cards relating to specific areas of consent such as providing treatment to children, consent and research, obtaining consent for teaching purposes, assessing competence and determining best interests.
The Department of Health has published a range of guidance on consent for both clincians and patients Key documents
