Informed consent from the mentally incompetent elderly

Abstract

Mental incompetence in an elderly person who needs medical intervention represents a considerable problem for physicians, since mental incompetence can interfere substantially with medical care. To address such a problem successfully—that is, to perform the intervention with an ethically obtained informed consent—a physician may have to delay therapy or even face the failure of being able to obtain such consent ethically and legally. In this article, Dr Ratzan helps us wade through the legalese with useful suggestions for assessing mental competence in the elderly and for helping patients prepare for possible mental incompetence in the future.