Informed consent forms for gynecologic cancer surgery: recommendations from the Korean Society of Gynecologic Oncology

Abstract

The sociomedical environment is changing. In the traditional physician-patient relationship, the physician was authoritative and the patient was obedient. The contractual relationship featured patient consent to the physician’s decision. Today, the physician must explain fully the planned medical treatment, and any alternative, to the patient, who has the right to choose her treatment after considering the benefits and side-effects. The Korean Society of Gynecologic Oncology thus decided to standardize the surgical consent forms to meet the legal requirements of modern medicine, improve patient understanding of the surgical details, and protect medical staff from legal disputes. To determine the format and content, subcommittees for each cancer type collected and reviewed all relevant articles and the current consent forms of domestic medical institutions. After several meetings, 16 basic items to be included for each type of gynecologic cancer were selected. Also, to help patients understand the surgical details, figures were included. The revised forms were legally reviewed in terms of the appropriateness of the format and content. We also developed English versions to provide adequate information for foreign patients. We hope that these efforts will promote trust between patients and physicians, and contribute to effective treatment by laying a foundation of mutual respect.