Surgical procedures: are we working to capacity?

Abstract

In this report, we examine the issue of consent for surgical procedures in patients who may have impaired cognition, and therefore may not have the mental capacity to provide consent. As the average age of our population continues to rise, we need to be cognizant of this when performing surgical procedures within dermatology. To explore how often doctors perform capacity assessments, we conducted a survey, which highlights the need to further incorporate this topic into dermatology training programmes, so that clinicians are equipped with the necessary skills to assess patients’ capacity to provide consent.