Publications and guidance

Standards for patient consent particular to radiology, Second edition

Ref No: BFCR(12)8

Date of publication: 2012 ISBN: 978-1-905034-57-4 This guidance, Standards for patient consent particular to radiology, Second edition, replaces the Standards for patient consent particular to radiology (2005). It expands on the guidance in Good Medical Practice by the General Medical Council, which requires doctors to be satisfied that they have consent from a patient, or other valid authority, before undertaking any examination or investigation, providing treatment, or involving patients in teaching and research.

The advice provided in this document is deliberately generic, rather than prescriptive. We have not provided lists of procedures which require written consent, nor those where implied consent would be appropriate and sufficient. In each case where you provide care, you will need to make a judgement on the basis of the nature of the procedure, level of risk versus the potential benefit, and your understanding of the needs of the patient.

Above all, ‘consent’ is involving patients in decisions made about their care, and communicating information effectively, thus ensuring that decisions made about patient care are made with the patient, rather than for the patient.

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