El consentimiento informado en la comunicación médico-paciente: análisis crítico del marco legislativo

Abstract

The paradigm shift in doctor-patient communication patterns that has taken place in recent decades has led to more engaging and empowering communicative models that highlight the importance of clinical communication. In this context, informed consent (IC) plays a fundamental role as it helps democratize clinical communication and ensures the patient’s autonomy and right to information. This article examines the communicative process associated with IC by means of a critical, comparative analysis of the Spanish legislative framework, both at national and regional level, to determine to what extent current legal provisions regulate the complex communication process involved in giving consent, both as an act of communication and as a document proving the patient's consent. The results indicate that Spanish legislation devotes more attention to IC as a communicative process than to the document itself, thus failing to address fundamental aspects related to its content and form. It is also observed that the patient's voice tends to be somewhat neglected (consultation of doubts, expression of concerns, etc.). Together with the challenge posed by the need for adequacy and personalization of the information, the legibility and comprehensibility of the IC forms as well as aspects related to its delivery protocol, this casts some doubt on the efficacy of IC as a tool for clinical communication