Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com

informed consent

American  

noun

  1. a patient's consent to a medical or surgical procedure or to participation in a clinical study after being properly advised of the relevant medical facts and the risks involved.


Etymology

Origin of informed consent

First recorded in 1965–70

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Informed consent is required before any medical procedure that comes with significant risks, like a surgery or other invasive operation, for example.

From Slate • May 2, 2025

Informed consent documents and educational materials for patients “oftentimes describe closer monitoring, greater attention as one of the benefits of trial participation,” he says.

From Science Magazine • May 22, 2024

Informed consent means an individual is provided all the relevant information about a trial to make their own decision about whether to participate.

From Textbooks • Jun. 15, 2022

"Informed consent clinics" are specialized health centers that apprise trans patients of the risks associated with HRT without posing the barriers often imposed upon teens like Reed.

From Salon • Oct. 30, 2021

Informed consent focused on what doctors were required to tell their patients; there was little mention of how it might apply to research like Southam’s, in which subjects weren’t the researcher’s patients.

From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot