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Is Consent in Medicine a Concept Only of Modern Times? J Med Ethics: first published as 10.1136/jme.27.1.59 on 1 February 2001. Downloaded from Journal of Medical Ethics 2001;27:59–61 Is consent in medicine a concept only of modern times? P Dalla-Vorgia, J Lascaratos, P Skiadas and T Garanis-Papadatos National University of Athens Medical School, International Hippocratic Foundation and the National School of Public Health, Athens, Greece Abstract excellent knowledge of human life, and also deep feelings, which express Plato’s desire for the Although the issue of consent in medical practice has 5 grown immensely in recent years, and it is generally improvement of life and true happiness for people. believed that historical cases are unknown, our The book presents much variety, as it discusses research amongst original ancient Greek and legal issues and also historical, theological, ethical Byzantine historical sources reveals that it is a very and aesthetic theories. old subject which ancient philosophers and physicians Plato makes a distinction between real doctors have addressed. Plato, in ancient Greece, connected and others who are doctors’ assistants who are also consent with the quality of a free person and even called “doctors”. The latter might be free-born or before him, Hippocrates had advocated seeking the slaves who acquired their art by experience, under patient’s cooperation in order to combat the disease. In the direction of their masters and not from the Alexander the Great’s era and later on in Byzantine study of nature, as the free-born doctors learned times, not only was the consent of the patient necessary their art and then taught it to their children and but physicians were asking for even more safeguards apprentices. Since patients may be either slaves or before undertaking a diYcult operation. free men, the slaves were treated by doctor-slaves Our study has shown that from ancient times who did not give the slave any information about physicians have at least on occasion been driven to his illness nor accept any discussion about it. The seek the consent of their patient either because of free-born doctor, however, treated mainly free men. respect for the patient’s autonomy or from fear of the He asked for information from the patient himself consequences of their failure. and from his friends about the commencement and (Journal of Medical Ethics 2001;27:59–61) the course of the illness. And after having gathered Keywords: Consent; history of medicine; medical ethics all the necessary data, he informed the patient—so http://jme.bmj.com/ far as possible—about the nature of his illness and did not give him any prescription until he had Introduction gained the patient’s consent, and only then did he The doctrine of consent in medicine, in both the attempt to make the patient well, soothing him with context of therapy and research, has been debated advice and preparing him persuasively.6 particularly vigorously since the second world war. In Gorgias too, Plato uses the concept of persua- The main issues discussed include the need for sion of the patient by the doctor and stresses the informed consent on the one hand, a prerequisite fact that a rhetor (a person trained to speak in pub- on which lawyers are very strict, and the necessary lic) might have better results.7 This may be on September 27, 2021 by guest. Protected copyright. flexibility of its application on the other hand, on interpreted as meaning that persons specifically which most physicians insist, in order to meet the 1 trained to obtain consent, or doctors who have spe- needs of individual patients. There is contempo- cific training in this, could be better at this task. rary agreement that consent has to be informed, One of the fundamental principles of Plato’s voluntary and given by a person who is able to philosophy is that the “knowledge of good” is understand to what he or she is consenting. inherent in every human being. According to Plato However, medical consent is not only a concept the patient knows what is “good” for him, and thus of modern times, as is often thought and believed 2–4 the role of the physician is to help this hidden by many authors. Our research amongst the knowledge emerge from the patient’s soul by using original texts of ancient Greek and Byzantine the proper arguments. In this way, persuasion is authors revealed that consent was already an also used by Plato in his book The Statesman8 where important issue at that time. he says, however, that if a physician does not persuade, but forces his patient to do the right Material thing, though it be contrary to the written precepts, In the course of his dialogues in Laws Plato refers to such behaviour would not be called “unscientific the issue of consent, as a means to prove the and baneful error”. This of course gives us the more correctness of his thoughts. The Laws is considered common view of the paternalistic practising of the last work of Plato, and although it has been medicine in ancient Greece. criticised for some weak points, because of his old It is worth noticing that Plato requires consent age, as a totality it presents intellectual maturity, from the free man in contrast to slaves. In this way www.jmedethics.com J Med Ethics: first published as 10.1136/jme.27.1.59 on 1 February 2001. Downloaded from 60 Is consent in medicine a concept only of modern times? he shows the relation of consent to autonomy of the able pains. In the account of John of Ephesus,19 this person as the expression of his right to self disease was caused “by the stones which his determination and free will. Furthermore, the intestines produced”. With cries of agony the information given to patients or healthy research emperor was begging the physicians to release him subjects and their ability to say “yes” or “no” to from the unbearable pains or even to kill him.19 20 therapy or research are closely connected with what The physicians were not eager to operate because it is to be a free person. In our times, when every they were afraid they would be punished if they person is free, regardless of sex, education or social failed. Finally they found a way to proceed and not status, consent in therapy and research is necessary, be held responsible if the emperor died. Besides his even though the medical profession sometimes reassurance that there would be no serious advocates, for the benefit of the person concerned, consequences or danger for them if he died during a modified informed or true consent. the operation, they requested, as John of Ephesus19 Hippocrates, the father of scientific medicine, in relates, that the scalpel for the operation should be his book Epidemics I,9 even before Plato, said that given them by the emperor’s own hand. That would the patient must cooperate with the physician in be a gesture which declared “his own free will for combating the disease. Such cooperation could of the surgical intervention” according to the tradition course mean a patient had to obey all his physician’s at that time.20 orders, but it could also mean that the patient, in The same symbolism for the seeking not only of order to cooperate, had to be informed and to give patient consent but of patient request is found in consent. later texts such as the Miracula Sancti Artemii (Miracles of St Artemios, 7th century) and the Life of St Lucas Stylites. Nor is this seeking of a request Defensive medicine from a patient confined to powerful patients, as in In ancient Greece we also see an early appearance the previous examples. The anonymous author of of what we now call defensive medicine. The the Miracles of St Artemios21 praises the power of that following cases show that not only the consent of saint to heal diseases of the testicles and hernias. At the patient was necessary, but that physicians the same time, he actually blames Hippocrates and sometimes asked for even more safeguards before his successors, the physicians, because, when they undertaking a diYcult operation. are going to operate on someone for what we in The first case relates to Alexander the Great, who modern times understand to have been hernias, suVered an almost fatal disease during his cam- they ask for the consent and indeed the request of paign in Asia. Physicians were afraid to treat him the patient by their request for the symbolic gesture because of the severity of the disease, because of the of the latter oVering “the sword” (the lancet) to the known strictness of the emperor, and also because 10 surgeon. In this way, if God heals the patient, the of the intrigues of that time. Finally, an eminent doctor boasts; but if not, the doctor is not military physician, Philip of Acarnania, undertook considered responsible. http://jme.bmj.com/ the treatment of Alexander, under strong pressure from Alexander and after the emperor had openly declared his trust in him.11–15 The second case also concerns Alexander the Authentic therapies Great.16 Alexander was seriously wounded during Later on, in the 10th century, when subdeacon the siege of a town of the Mallians in India (326 Sergios developed a swelling on the face which the BC). There are several descriptions of the emper- physicians could not cure, he went to the Church of or’s operation but all historians agree on the sever- St Lucas Stylites, to be treated.
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