A Study on the level of awareness in Consents obtained from Patients Undergoing Surgery at the Medical University of Birjand

one of the fundamental rights of patients is giving consent to a particular treatment method, and all health care centers are required to obtain consent from the patients or their guardians. Informed consent is defined as free and voidable agreement of a qualified person regarding participation in treatment; by understanding the nature, purpose and consequences of the consent. Studies show that informed consent and shared decision-making can be related to the speed of the patients’ recovery. This study seeks to study the level of awareness in consents obtained from patients under surgery at the Medical University of Birjand. In this descriptive-cross-sectional study, 248 patients (content provider) in Surgery wards of Birjand University of Medical Sciences enrolled randomly in this study in 2011. Data were collected through interviews with patients after surgery using a self-designed questionnaire and were analyzed by descriptive and inferential statistics. The 44.9% of consents were received of patients themselves, out of which 88% were in written form, and the time to get 57/6% of them was at the time of patient's admission. The extent to which patients were informed at the time of clinical decision-making and giving informed consent was poor, but the patient's understanding and participation in clinical decision-making and physician's interaction with patients were moderate. Patient's understanding of the consent form was significant according to the hospital and the time of receiving the consent form. Also, the patient's participation in clinical decision-making had significant differences according to the hospital. According to the results, strategies must be devised to increase patient's information in order for their better understanding of the consent form and their participation in clinical decisions.