Investigating the level of awareness regarding informed consent among the post-operative patients in surgical ward

Abstract

Background: The concept of informed consent is an important aspect
of biomedical ethics, which is obtained in written form, but in some cases, it may
be verbal, especially for non-invasive and relatively non-risky interventions. The
study was conducted with the aim of evaluating the level of awareness among
post-operative patients regarding informed consent.
Methodology: The study design was cross-sectional descriptive and was
conducted in the surgical ward of a tertiary care hospital in Swat, Pakistan from
December 2023 to January 2024. The sample size of the study was 180 using the
purposive sampling technique, while a valid and reliable questionnaire was used
for data collection. Descriptive statistics were used through SPSS 22.0. The study
was approved by an ethical review committee, and informed consent was obtained
from every respondent.
Results: The finding reveals that the majority of the participants were female 112
(55.7%), the age group 36–45 years was 75 (37.3%), and people belonged to
village 189 (94%). The maximum number of patients level of awareness was good
(58%), while the remaining 42% had a poor level of awareness. The majority of the
patients know the type of surgery 181 (90%), alternative treatment to the surgery
123 (61.2%), number of hours to be nothing per oral (NPO) 190 (94.5%), time of
surgery 197 (98%), and overall satisfaction regarding informed consent 201
(100%).
Conclusion: The study found that patients lack awareness about the surgeon,
procedure process, advantages and disadvantages, procedure importance,
anesthesia type, and complications, highlighting the need for enough information
regarding their procedure.