To what extent are the wishes of the patient respected? (Law, medical ethics)

A patient, who is a competent adult, has an absolute right to refuse medical treatment under UK law. It helps protect the patients’ right to ‘autonomy, self- determination and inviolability’. Before explaining how this is the case, an outline of context and terms is required. This essay shall focus on patients who are competent adults. Consent has always been necessary in medical procedures, touching a patient without consent is recognised as the tort of battery or assault in the common law. The requirements of valid consent are threefold; the patient must have received sufficient information to reach a decision, possess competency and consent should be absent of duress or manipulation. The treatment cannot be unlawful or against public policy, although it should be noted public interest may change with time.Informed consent, however, requires an understandable, honest discussion of treatment and potential risks with a patient before they proceed with a course of action. Academic debates focus on how much information should be given. There is the ‘reasonable physician standard’ and the ‘reasonable patient standard’.