Importance Of Consent In Nursing

Patients have a right to receive the best treatment possible in medical settings around the world. Sometimes a patient can refuse that treatment and as nurses we have to stand by and let that happen. Despite the fact that informed consent is not always directly obtained by a nurse, we still have a duty to assist the physician and patient in order to make the process as fluid and smooth as possible. One of the best interventions we can implement is guide a patient by educating them so that they understand the procedure and the risks involved with it; by doing so, we preserve patient autonomy. As nurses we establish a bond with our patients and we want to help them as much as we can, so obtaining consent from a patient and making sure we do it

The fact is we want to get sick people better; it is in a nurse’s nature to care for the well-being of each patient. We study for hours in nursing school to be the best nurses we can be so that we can learn to properly assess and provide treatment. What every nurse must always remember is that patients have rights. It is important to get a patients informed consent and to be sure that they understand the procedure they are about to undergo, why they need the treatment, the risks involved, and the ramifications behind the decision to give their consent. When a patient does not fully comprehend a procedure, how can we as nurses expect them to readily agree to medical interventions blindly? We have to respect their rights as our patients and also be sure we do right by them and help them understand better and maybe patients would be less apprehensive to undergo a possibly lifesaving medical

Sometimes a medical intervention is necessary for the patient’s survival, but they can still choose to refuse that life-saving intervention. Generally, nurses usually do not obtain informed consent because physicians usually do so, but nurses are still a part of the process and we are usually the witness for the patient signing that form. “Nurses can offer what we do best—patient teaching, as we check patient understanding and obtain written consent. Where possible, use the teach-back method, asking the patient to repeat back what he/she understands. However, our teaching cannot take the place of prior physician / patient shared decision-making.” (Bonsall, 2015) As nurses we can also be sure to teach clients starting at a 5th grade level, providing an interpreter in the event that a language barrier is present, or just presenting information to the patient imagining ourselves in that situation; as a regular person without any medical background trying to understand a different language filled with incomprehensible medical jargon. (Dowling,