Patient autonomy: what it is and how to respect it
Quick facts
- Definition
- The patient's right to decide about their own body, based on adequate information.
- Principle
- One of the four principles of bioethics, alongside beneficence, nonmaleficence and justice.
- Condition
- It only truly exists when there is clear information and a free decision.
- Limit
- Does not oblige the professional to perform a procedure they consider inappropriate.
- Instrument
- Informed consent, recorded in the patient record.
Autonomy is the patient's right to make decisions about their own body and their own health, based on adequate information. It is one of the four principles of bioethics, and the ethical basis of informed consent.
What ensures an autonomous decision?
For the choice to be free, the patient needs clear information, in understandable language, and time to decide without pressure. The professional's duty to inform includes the indication, alternatives, risks, limits of the result and costs.
| Element | In practice |
|---|---|
| Information | Explain the procedure, the risks and the alternatives |
| Understanding | Confirm that the patient understood |
| Voluntariness | No pressure from sales or packages |
| Record | Consent form and patient record |
When the request is not indicated?
Autonomy is not an obligation to carry out. The professional also has technical autonomy, and may refuse a procedure considered unsafe or with a result incompatible with the expectation. In that case, explain the reasons, offer alternatives and record the conversation.
How do images help, and where can they get in the way?
A visual simulation can improve understanding, but it can also create an unrealistic expectation if presented as a promise. That is why it should be treated as an illustrative simulation, and the conversation should make clear that the actual result varies.
Also called: patient self-determination.
Frequently asked questions
Can the patient demand a specific procedure?
They can ask for it and decide what they accept, but the professional is not obliged to perform what they consider inappropriate or unsafe. The patient's autonomy coexists with the professional's.