The Research On The Informed Consent Rights Of Minor Patients

As special type of patients, the minor patients should enjoy the right of informed consent. However, due to minor informed consent ability is insufficient, the right of informed consent is often composed of the legal guardian or agent to execute. Agent’s decision may damage the interests of the minor patients, especially some giving up medical decision even indirectly lead to the deprival of minor survival right. In the face of such a decision, medical personnel and medical institutions usually don’t have effective legal solutions, in addition to providing some suggestion. The tragedy of minor patients being indirectly deprived of survival right underlines the insufficient of China’s legal system on the minors’right of informed consent. This paper will analyze from the following four aspects.In the first paragraph, the legal problem of minor survival right being indirectly deprived by guardian or agent was proposed through some public events. The insufficient of legal system on the minors’right of informed consent was outstanding through analysis of China’s existing laws and regulations on the rights of the minor patients.In the second paragraph, division system of minor competence on informed consent was discussed. Then minor informed consent ability assessment system was recommended to be established in medical institution by learning from the experience of other countries.In the third paragraph, the agent right of minor’s right on informed consent was focused on. Then statutory guardian agency and health care agency were analyzed."The best interests of standard" and "alternative criteria" are two important rules which should be used to measure whether the agent decision is on behalf the best benefits of minor patients or not. The decision possible damaging the minor patients should be restricted or canceled. There are some limitations for exercising of informed consent, including doctors’special intervene right, doctors’discretion right and emergent treatment for patients.In the fourth paragraph, some relevant proposals were put forward to ensure minor patients’informed consent right being achieved. The establishment of judicial review procedure and medical ethical review system for minor patients was recommended. The Public Guardian system should also be improved for the protection of the interests of minor patients.