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Recommendations

Chapter 11. Consent

2. Consent Forms in the Future

2.1  We have considered a number of consent forms for hospital post mortem examination. Until recently all Alder Hey consent forms referred solely to ‘tissue’ and not ‘organs’. The parents are keen to use the terms which are defined by the Concise Oxford Dictionary as follows:

2.2  We have also considered a model consent form contained in the publication by The Royal College of Pathologists in March 2000 entitled ‘Guidelines for the Retention of Tissues and Organs at Post Mortem Examination’. The model is formal and complex.

2.3  None of the forms we have seen provide the basis for clinicians to obtain fully informed consent and properly to set out and record the decision. Clear, informal language is essential. It appears to us that the more official the form, the less efficient it is in practice. Understanding, particularly in grief, is vital. We suggest a new approach.