Recurring concern
Inadequate informed-consent processes for medical treatment
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Request correctionFirst reported 1 Jul 2014•Latest report 28 Dec 2025
What this concern includes
Includes failures of medical-treatment consent processes, including initiation, information about material risks, time for consideration, consistency of procedure, assessment of consent and documentation, where the failure is directly tied to obtaining valid informed consent.
Not included
- Excludes legal-status or detention transfers that do not concern consent to medical treatment.
- Excludes general communication, training, documentation or staffing deficiencies unless they are directly tied to the medical-treatment consent process.
- Excludes clinical assessment or treatment-selection failures that do not concern obtaining or recording informed consent.
- Reports
- 31
- Individual concerns
- 37
- Date range
- 2014–2025
- Stated actions
- 56
Distinct published reports
A report can raise multiple concerns
First to latest report issue date
Described in published responses
Reports over time
Reports over time
Reports about this concern issued each year.
* 2026 is projected from reports observed to 7 Sep 2026.
Most frequent recipients
Most frequent recipients
Reports about this concern sent to each recipient.
Concerns and responses across reports
Only concerns grouped under this recurring concern are included. Select any concern, action or position to view the source wording.
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Concerns raised1
Failure to provide adequately informed consent for ascitic tap procedures
This report raised 4 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.2
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Action
Continue supporting clinicians and patients to assess and discuss ascitic-tap risks and benefits before procedures.
Stated by Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust -
Action
Review patient-safety leaflets against relevant professional guidance to support informed shared decisions about ascitic-tap care.
Stated by Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust
Respondent positions A position is what a respondent says about the concern when they do not describe a specific action.4
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Position
The GMC’s comprehensive consent framework provides sufficient current principles for obtaining valid informed consent in radiology.
Stated by Royal College of Radiologists
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Position
Producing patient information leaflets for individual procedures falls outside the RCR’s role as a professional standards body.
Stated by Royal College of Radiologists -
Position
The Trust cannot definitively quantify ascitic tap risks because specific published evidence is absent, a national or international problem.
Stated by Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust -
Position
Verbal consent remains acceptable for many low-risk procedures because written consent is impracticable in every instance; patient leaflets are not universal.
Stated by Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust
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Concerns raised2
Obtaining consent signatures while patients are under morphine sedation
Failure to identify clinicians involved in consent discussions
This report raised 3 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.2
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Action
Refresh the consent policy to require documentation of patient-specific increased risks, earlier discussion of death risk, and consideration and documentation of capacity.
Stated by Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust -
Action
Work with clinical teams to ensure patients’ capacity to consent is considered, taken into account, and properly documented.
Stated by Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust
Respondent positions A position is what a respondent says about the concern when they do not describe a specific action.1
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Position
Time and resource constraints make listing all staff involved throughout a patient's consent process impracticable.
Stated by Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust
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Concerns raised1
Inadequate protocols for consent to medical treatment forms
This report raised 15 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.1
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Action
Train nurses and shift leaders on documentation, care plans, wound management, assessments, body maps, consent forms and hospital-return documentation.
Stated by Hill Care Group
Respondent positions A position is what a respondent says about the concern when they do not describe a specific action.1
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Position
Existing protocols for wound management and required care documentation are considered sufficient, with compliance monitored through regular audits.
Stated by Hill Care Group
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Concerns raised2
Lack of accountability between professionals for consent
Failure to personalise consent
This report raised 4 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.3
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Action
Implement the redesigned Medway-based ERCP referral pathway with expanded clinical-risk and consent information fields.
Stated by Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust -
Action
Provide inpatient information booklets and obtain consent through ERCP endoscopist ward reviews before procedures.
Stated by Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust -
Action
Amend patient information and consent forms to document operator experience or supervision arrangements and enhanced individual risk.
Stated by Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust
Respondent positions A position is what a respondent says about the concern when they do not describe a specific action.2
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Position
The described vetting and consent arrangements are expected to resolve accountability between professionals, so no additional action is identified.
Stated by Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust
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Position
Precise individualised risk cannot currently be calculated, limiting the ability to personalise ERCP consent precisely.
Stated by Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust
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Concerns raised1
Failure to provide informed consent discussions and facilitate maternal wishes regarding mode of delivery
This report raised 3 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.5
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Action
Adopt the IDECIDE tool in the maternity information system to support and document informed mode-of-delivery decisions.
Stated by Worcestershire Acute NHS Trust -
Action
Introduce personalised care plans in the BadgerNotes app for discussion, review and professional authorisation.
Stated by Worcestershire Acute NHS Trust -
Action
Provide monthly multidisciplinary maternity training covering human factors, informed consent, Montgomery, balanced counselling and documentation.
Stated by Worcestershire Acute NHS Trust
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Action
Establish and audit a robust process for managing requests for Caesarean Section during labour.
Stated by Worcestershire Acute NHS Trust -
Action
Appoint an Audit and Guidelines Midwife to support Caesarean-request process development and audit.
Stated by Worcestershire Acute NHS Trust
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Concerns raised1
Inconsistent consenting procedures for identical endoscopy treatment
This report raised 5 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.1
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Action
Move toward procedure-specific consent information and engage external providers to support standardised information for each procedure.
Stated by University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
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Concerns raised1
Failure to provide adequate preoperative discussion and explanation before consent
This report raised 2 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
No linked response statementsNo respondent-stated action or position is linked to these concerns in the published data.
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Concerns raised1
Misleading emphasis on flu-like symptoms in TRUS elective surgery consent and information provision
This report raised 7 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.1
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Action
Standardize sepsis terminology and remove “rarely” from the TRUS biopsy consent form.
Stated by Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Local Health Board
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Concerns raised1
Failure to obtain informed consent for BBL procedures
This report raised 2 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.1
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Action
Publish revised consent guidance with tailored specialty materials emphasising time for patients to consider treatment information.
Stated by General Medical Council
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Concerns raised1
Failure to communicate donor kidney CMV status to the transplant recipient for informed consent
This report raised 1 other concern. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.1
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Action
Strengthen transplant consent by specifically discussing and documenting donor-recipient CMV risks before transplantation.
Stated by Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust
Data last updated 7 September 2026