Informed consent in the elderly: assessing decisional capacity
Artnak, K.E.
Seminars in Perioperative Nursing 6(1): 59-64
1997
ISSN/ISBN: 1056-8670 PMID: 9087123 Document Number: 472342
Informed consent is a process involving both patient rights and professional responsibilities. A nurses discomfort with an elderly person's ability to make a fully informed choice can be a source of ethical conflict. Assessing mental capacity in this vulnerable patient population is a necessary function of respecting patient autonomy.