Reprinted with Permission from the Medical Association of the State of Alabama.

In June, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court issued a controversial opinion holding that a physician had to have face-to-face interaction with the patient to effectively obtain informed consent. This has raised heightened awareness of a physician's obligations to obtain informed consent from their patients and caused many to evaluate their own practice of obtaining informed consent.

In Shinol v. Toms, a patient brought a medical malpractice case against a neurosurgeon alleging he failed to obtain informed consent. (2017 WL 2655387). The record and testimony at trial established that that the physician met with the patient on two occasions prior to surgery to discuss potential complications. The physician testified that he explained the different approaches and options for surgery. The patient also had a telephone conversation with a certified physician assistant ("PA") who worked for the physician, and just before surgery, the patient met with the PA who obtained her medical history, conducted a physical examination and obtained an executed informed consent form. The form gave the physician permission to perform "'a resection of recurrent craniopharyngioma." The patient's signature acknowledged that she had discussed the advantages and disadvantages of alternative treatments, that the form had been fully explained to her, that she had an opportunity to ask questions, and that she had sufficient information to give her informed consent.

Despite her signature on the consent form, the patient alleged in the lawsuit that she was not fully informed of her options (total versus subtotal resection of a non-malignant brain tumor). According to the patient, if she had been given the option of a subtotal resection, she would have chosen the less aggressive form of surgery.

To read the full article, download "Have You Properly Obtained Informed Consent?" written by Angie C. Smith.