Consent guidance: Contents

	Paragraphs
How the guidance applies to you
Part 1: Principles	1-2
Partnership	3-6
Part 2: Making decisions about investigations and treatment	7-60
Sharing information and discussing treatment options	7-11
Answering questions	12
Reasons for not sharing information with patients	13-17
Sharing information	18-21
Involving families, carers and advocates	22
Obstacles to sharing information	23-25
Responsibility for seeking a patient's consent	26-27
Discussing side effects, complications and other risks	28-36
Making decisions	37-43
The scope of decisions	37-39
Making decisions about potential future events	40
Ensuring that decisions are voluntary	41-42
Respecting a patient's decisions	43
Expressions of consent	44-50
Recording decisions	51
Reviewing decisions	52-53
Involving children and young people in making decisions	54-56
Advance care planning	57-61
Part 3: Capacity issues	62-80
The legal framework	62-63
Presumption of capacity	64-65
Maximising a patient's ability to make decisions	66-70
Assessing capacity	71-74
Making decisions when a patient lacks capacity	75-76
Resolving disagreements	77-78
The scope of treatment in emergencies	79
Common law
Legislation
Other sources of information and guidance
Endnotes