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The child who refuses to undergo anesthesia and surgery – a case scenario‐based discussion of the ethical and legal issues
Author(s) -
WALKER HEIDI
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
pediatric anesthesia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.704
H-Index - 82
eISSN - 1460-9592
pISSN - 1155-5645
DOI - 10.1111/j.1460-9592.2009.03010.x
Subject(s) - medicine , guardian , ethical issues , pediatric surgery , intensive care medicine , anesthesia , medical emergency , engineering ethics , surgery , law , political science , engineering
Summary Situations where children refuse to undergo anesthesia and surgery can be challenging for anesthetists. Clear legal guidelines are lacking and decisions often need to be made with a degree of urgency. When a child refuses to cooperate with the induction of anesthesia, it is important to consider the autonomous capacity of the child, the presence of a legally valid consent from a suitable guardian, the urgency with which the surgery needs to proceed and the practical implications of proceeding without the child’s cooperation. In this article, case scenarios are used to demonstrate how these considerations can be applied in practice.