25 Feb 2019

25/2/2019

NEW BLOG POST

What happens when the last minute,
is also the first minute?

"The time has come," the Doctor said,
"To seek informed consent:
blah blah risks--blah blah side effects
your labour to augment
I need your 'informed consent' now--
sign here for this intent."

National Photographic Portrait Prize

The National Photographic Portrait Prize is an annual event intended to promote the very best in contemporary photographic portraiture by both professional and aspiring Australian photographers.
The winner for 2019 is Alana Holmberg for her portrait Greta In Her Kitchen, 36 weeks. The highly commended award was won by Alex Vaughan for Sumbawa Pride – Life on a Boat With Eleven Kids.

DIS - CONSENT

This is a story about tooth extraction. It tells a tale of a woman's visit to a dentist, and the dentist's need to obtain 'informed consent'. This story highlights the absurdity that is 'informed consent'.
This story could just as easy be an anesthetist seeking informed consent before administering an epidural. Many women primed to receive an epidural are in a not listening, just-get-on-with-it state of mind. This is not the time to discuss it. The discussion needs to take place before the procedure is being set up...before the need arises. In the case of the tooth, the 'informed consent' should be sort BEFORE the appointment is even made. The making of the appointment is a step towards consent. There is already an assumed consent that comes with entering the birthing ward, just as there is with sitting in the dental chair. In that moment, whilst the procedure is being set up, it is patronising and painstakingly frustrating to pause to seek 'informed consent'. If the person you are seeking consent from is mentally distracted (ie by pain) or as already accepted the necessity of the procedure (ie the only alternative is more pain, further complications or even death), then 'informed consent' is neither respectful or logical. A decision has been made. The information regarding risk, benefit and alternative should have happened before the appointment was made.

Unfortunately, when we are in the moment, informed consent takes on a new meaning. It is not about making a decision, but taking a last minute chance to re-evaluate. In such times, we need to be really tuned in to our intuition AND empowered to withdrawn consent, should that be our determination. This is especially true if the last minute is also the first minute.

When it comes to dental procedures, there is usually plenty of time before the last minute.

And despite what many say, there is also plenty of time during pregnancy to consider various scenarios, so that any last minutes are not also the first minute. Leaving any 'decisions' to the last minute can be incredibly stressful for all involved. As the dentist in our story describes - the care provider is very aware of the fraught nature of informed consent.