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Download medical consent form in Microsoft Word format.
Get Peace of Mind with a Medical Consent Form
Have you ever wondered how you would authorize treatment for yourself if a serious illness or accident left you completely incapacitated? Have you similarly wondered how you would authorize treatment for your children if they became ill or experienced an accident when at school, the babysitter’s house or when visiting their grandparents? According to the law, doctors and hospitals are required to get consent before treating a patient, and if the patient is a child they must have parental consent before moving forward. This can often be tricky, as there are times when the patient will be so critical that he/she will be unable to give that consent, just as there will be instances where children will require treatment when injured somewhere other than their home. This is where the medical consent form can come in quite handy. These types of forms can pre-authorize doctors and hospitals to perform treatment on patients and can save valuable seconds when immediate treatment is needed. In this article we will give a brief definition of the medical consent form and its purpose, and outline some of the main topics these forms usually address.
What Is a Medical Consent Form and What Is Its Purpose
If you’ve ever been a patient in a hospital setting, chances are pretty good that you’ve already seen and perhaps signed a specific type of medical consent form for some type of procedure or treatment. These documents, which are legal in nature, are designed to protect you, the doctor and the hospital from any future liability. And while this type of form is fairly standard for patients in a hospital setting, there are other forms of medical consent as well—the type that is signed as a precaution, authorizing someone else to act on your behalf when medical treatment is needed in the future—for you, your wife or your children.
As an example of this, let’s say you were out of town on business, your children were staying with their grandparents, and one of them was seriously injured from a fall, requiring emergency surgery. Unless you had previously signed a medical consent form giving permission to the grandparents to make these decisions, the surgery may have to be put off until you can arrive. This can cost valuable seconds and only add to your fear and anxiety. For this reason alone, medical consent forms are invaluable, as they ensure that rapid treatment can always be received for the person or people listed on the form.
Medical Consent Form: What Should Be Included?
Not all medical consent forms will look exactly alike, but as a general rule, they should contain at least the following information:
- Potential patient’s name. This could be you or any member of your family
- Person to whom decision making powers are granted. This could be the babysitter, school, grandparents, etc.
- Consent. This is a brief statement indicating you are giving permission to the hospital or doctor to treat the potential patient listed on the form.
- Precautions. In this section you will typically list any pre-existing conditions, allergies or medications the hospital should be aware of.
- Family doctor. Listing the family doctor can help hospitals quickly gain access to any pertinent patient records.
- Insurance information. This information helps the hospital quickly get financial authorization for treatment.
- Signature(s). The document is not legal until it is signed and dated.
A medical consent form, whether it’s for you or for your children, can give you peace of mind, knowing that you and your family are protected in the event of serious illness or injury.