Consent in Surrogacy – Free or Manufactured?
Ms. Soumya Verma
Indian Journal of Ethics, Logic and Philosophy, 21 April 2023
Abstract
Consent has an important role to play in the ethical domain, and the method by which consent is obtained should also be taken into consideration. It should not be taken by coercion, violence, or force. Surrogacy, a highly debatable topic in the domain of applied ethics whose legitimacy is significantly affected by consent, given by the surrogate mothers, which can change the different moral considerations and ethical claims. The contemporary debate on the issue of surrogacy seems to be between traditionalists and liberals, but this paper will take the debate further. In this paper, we shall try to problematize the liberal conception, which looks at the consent given by women in surrogacy limited to its face value, i.e., they limit consent to their saying “yes” because they have reproductive rights over their own bodies. This paper will further argue that consent in surrogacy should not be limited to its face value as taken by liberals, as it is not an ideal society, situations are different for different women, and there could be different social realities that constitute the factors behind that consent. Financial constraint, an important social reality, will be the focus of this paper, which leads a woman to give consent for surrogacy arrangements.

Consent as an act of commitment
Robert E. Goodin
European Journal of Philosophy, 16 April 2023
Abstract
Some say that consent is essentially just a state of mind. Others say it is essentially just a communication. Many say it is both. I say it is neither. Instead it is an act, or rather a pair of acts—an internal mental act in the first instance, an external performative act in the second. Each of those acts is an act of commitment, intrapersonally in the first case and interpersonally in the second. The content of the commitment is, familiarly enough, to give permission to someone else to do something that it would be wrong for them to do without your permission. The novelty lies in seeing consent as an act of commitment in those two dimensions and in seeing those as commitments that persist until and unless undone by an act of a similar sort.

Informed Consent: A Monthly Review
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April 2023 :: Issue 52

This digest aggregates and distills key content addressing informed consent from a broad spectrum of peer-reviewed journals and grey literature, and from various practice domains and organization types including international agencies, INGOs, governments, academic and research institutions, consortiums and collaborations, foundations, and commercial organizations. We acknowledge that this scope yields an indicative and not an exhaustive digest product.

Informed Consent: A Monthly Review is a service of the Center for Informed Consent Integrity, a program of the GE2P2 Global Foundation. The Foundation is solely responsible for its content. Comments and suggestions should be directed to:

Editor
Paige Fitzsimmons, MA
Associate Director, Center for Informed Consent Integrity
GE2P2 Global Foundation
paige.fitzsimmons@ge2p2global.org
PDF Version: GE2P2 Global_Informed Consent – A Monthly Review_April 2023

Trustworthiness as information: Satisfying the understanding condition of valid consent
Martin RK
Bioethics, 21 March 2023
Abstract
Within medical ethics, there is widespread agreement that morally valid consent includes an understanding condition. Disagreement centers on what is meant by that understanding condition. Tom Dougherty proposed that this understanding condition should be divided into the two mutually exclusive categories of descriptive information and contextual information. Further, Dougherty argues that each type of information is necessary to satisfy the understanding condition. In contrast, I argue that when the deontic aspect of valid consent is in view, each type of information can be sufficient to satisfy the understanding condition on its own. Moreover, by analyzing delegation, which is conceptually related to consent since both are morally transformative actions, I show that delegation often depends not on descriptive or contextual information but on trust. So, I argue that trustworthiness can also be a type of information that does the same work as descriptive and contextual information in satisfying the understanding condition for valid consent.

Editor’s note: The referenced article by Tom Do can be found here.

Consent and Trust in the Doctor Patient Relationship
Book Chapter
Philipp Bonhoeffer, Federico Festa, Lamia Ait Ali, Pierluigi Festa
The Patient as a Person, 21 March 2023 [Springer]
Abstract
Trust, defined as an assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something is an immensely precious subject matter in medicine. However, the historical doctor/patient relationship based on trust alone has shown important shortcomings. Consequently, the medical consent developed for the interest and legal protection of patients. This in turn led to a vulnerability of doctors who then needed to defend themselves whenever litigation occurred. As a result, the formal medical consent has rapidly shifted in its application as a protection to health professionals, far removed from its original purpose. Vigilance and trust need to be carefully balanced. After educating patients for years to be vigilant about wrong doings of doctors, patients have lost the clear benefit and comfort that trust brings in a good patient–doctor relationship. It is known that trust plays a major role in the healing process. Trust, therefore is a good thing and there is no reason why the positive effect of trust should be neglected in classical medicine.

Misconceptions about the Doctrine of Informed Consent in the Medical Profession
Kelvin Christie, Maurice A. Dean, Isiah Lyma
Research Developments in Medicine and Medical Science, 4 March 2023; pp 136-157
Abstract
This article focuses on common misunderstandings in healthcare regarding how physicians and medical researchers apply the doctrine of informed consent. The specific myth addressed has to do with the level of care expected of medical professionals when treating patients. This paper also explains how the legal history of informed consent has led to misconceptions about informed consent as applied to both medical researchers and medical physicians. There has long been a public misconception that medical researchers are subject to a lower standard of care than medical doctors in cases involving informed consent. We argue that this misconception is largely attributed to the fact that statutes, ethical regulations, guidelines, and legal precedents within the medical and research profession are governed by two separate bodies of laws and regulatory guidelines. Furthermore, informed consent in the medical setting has traditionally been enacted primarily from case law, while informed consent in the research setting has primarily been enacted from statutory law and regulations.

Informed Consent: A Monthly Review
_________________

March 2023 :: Issue 51

This digest aggregates and distills key content addressing informed consent from a broad spectrum of peer-reviewed journals and grey literature, and from various practice domains and organization types including international agencies, INGOs, governments, academic and research institutions, consortiums and collaborations, foundations, and commercial organizations. We acknowledge that this scope yields an indicative and not an exhaustive digest product.

Informed Consent: A Monthly Review is a service of the Center for Informed Consent Integrity, a program of the GE2P2 Global Foundation. The Foundation is solely responsible for its content. Comments and suggestions should be directed to:

Editor
Paige Fitzsimmons, MA
Associate Director, Center for Informed Consent Integrity
GE2P2 Global Foundation
paige.fitzsimmons@ge2p2global.org
PDF Version: GE2P2 Global_Informed Consent – A Monthly Review_March 2023

Assent in applied behaviour analysis and positive behaviour support: ethical considerations and practical recommendations
Discussion papers
Cassi A. Breaux, Kristin Smith
International Journal of Developmental Disabilities, 1 February 2023; pp 111-121
Abstract
The term positive behaviour support (PBS) is used to describe the integration of the contemporary ideology of disability service provision with the clinical framework of applied behaviour analysis (ABA). Assent, the participation consent of those not legally able to consent, has gained recent popularity in the fields of ABA and PBS. The goal of assent-based ABA and PBS is a person-centered approach to assessment, intervention, and all other decision-making. In this model, the learner’s assent withdrawal for participation is honored, whether it be a vocal ‘no’ or a non-vocal expression of verbal behaviour. There is currently a limited subset of studies that mention or utilize assent with learners in ABA or PBS. The lack of published research can make assent-based practices seem to be a choice of the practitioner. The authors of this manuscript seek to further define assent, illuminate the necessity of assent-based practices, and offer assent-based procedures in ABA- and PBS-based intervention.

Informed Consent: A Monthly Review
_________________

February 2023 :: Issue 50

This digest aggregates and distills key content addressing informed consent from a broad spectrum of peer-reviewed journals and grey literature, and from various practice domains and organization types including international agencies, INGOs, governments, academic and research institutions, consortiums and collaborations, foundations, and commercial organizations. We acknowledge that this scope yields an indicative and not an exhaustive digest product.

Informed Consent: A Monthly Review is a service of the Center for Informed Consent Integrity, a program of the GE2P2 Global Foundation. The Foundation is solely responsible for its content. Comments and suggestions should be directed to:

Editor
Paige Fitzsimmons, MA
Associate Director, Center for Informed Consent Integrity
GE2P2 Global Foundation
paige.fitzsimmons@ge2p2global.org
PDF Version: GE2P2 Global_Informed Consent – A Monthly Review_February 2023