Parental Responsibility And Consent

Seven-year-old Megan is on a school trip to the Isle of Wight when she slips on the edge of the swimming pool and lands awkwardly on her wrist. She is taken to the local Accident and Emergency department by her teacher. X-rays reveal she has a nasty comminuted fracture of her radius, and the orthopedic team believes that it is going to need manipulation under anesthesia in order to achieve satisfactory realignment. Your surgical ST6 has asked you to complete the necessary pre-theatre checklists and to complete the consent form. You try to explain to him that the parents are not present, but he reassures you that the teacher can sign instead, since she is the accompanying adult.

• Who can consent to medical treatment for young children?
• What happens in an emergency?

Apply Theory (Specific Professional Healthcare Competencies + Clinical Medical Ethical Principles) to Practice in order to provide Optimal Patient-Centered Care (OPCC)

Source – Ethics Case Studies from Clinical Ethics and Law (Second Edition), Carolyn Johnston Penelope Bradbury