Barriers to Informed Consent in Interventional Radiology: A Pilot Study

Abstract

BackgroundInformed consent is a central part of the relationships between patients and interventional radiology teams, but consent practices are variable and limited. PurposeThis study explored consent practices among clinicians and staff in an academic IR department to identify barriers to informed consent. MethodsSystematic interviews were conducted with 17 clinicians and staff about their roles in obtaining informed consent, perceptions of what informed consent and capacity determinations entail, and barriers to patients’ understanding of IR procedures. FindingsResults revealed four key barriers to adequate informed consent: limited procedural experience/knowledge by the consenting clinician, unclear division of responsibilities, inconsistent approaches to assessing capacity and surrogate decision making, and wide variation in patients’ baseline understandings. DiscussionThis variation seemed to stem from a lack of shared understanding about consent processes and responsibilities, highlighting an important area for quality improvement in IR that would benefit from a larger multipractice investigation of consent practices.