TERM 2 Flashcards
whats the purpose of the mental capacity act 2005?
to provide a framework to empower and protect people who may lack capacity to make some decisions for themselves
what are the 5 statutory principles of the mental capacity act 2005?
- presumption of capacity
- right to be supportted to make their own decisions
- right to make eccentric or unwise decisions
- healthcare providers should make decisions for those without capacity according to patients best interests
- before making a decision on a person’s behalf they mst consider whether the outcome is the least restrictive option
what are the 4 abilities needed in order to have capacity?
understanding information, retaining it, weighing it up and then communicating a decision
if a patient lacks capacity what should you do?
see if there is an advanced decision refusing treatment or a lasting power of attorney appointed. and if neither, a doctor and healthcare provider must make a decision on the basis of the patient’s best interest and least restrictive
what is a lasting power of attorney?
someone who you have chosen to make decisions on someone’s behalf
what is advances care planning?
planning for a future time when a person may no longer have capacity so cannot make their own decisions
what are the 2 aspects of advanced care planning?
advances statement of wishes and advanced decisions to refuse treatment
is advanced care planning legally binding?
advanced statement of wishes is not but advanced decisions to refuse treatment are legally binding and therefore must be respected
what treatment can a patient refuse in advanced decisions to refuse treatment?
any treatment apart from basic comfort and care
what makes an advanced decision valid?
- aged >18 and had the capacity to make, understand and communicate the decision at the time
- you specify clearly what treatments you want to refuse
- you explain circumstances in which you wish to refuse treatment
- its signed by you (and a witness if you want to refuse life-sustaining treatment)
- you have made the decision of your own accord, with no co-ercion
- you havnt said or done anything that would contradict the advanced decision since you made it
how can mental health conditions like dementia interfere with a person’s capcity to make decisions?
dementia can make it difficult to understand, retain, weigh up info anf communicate decisions
what does the right to make unwise decisions mean?
a doctor should not presume a patient lacks capacity just because they view a decision as eccentric/unwise
what are ethical arguments for use of advanced decisions?
having a legal right makes it more likely for patients to feel empowered and for their decisions to be respected which leads to patient autonomy
it encourages openess and thoughtful planning
what are the ethical arguments against advanced decisions?
how do you know if these particular circumstances are what the patient meant when they created the AD
at the time of making the AD, the patient may not fully understand what it will be like when they do lose capacity and need to make use of AD
there is always a possibility of coercion
you cannot be sure that the patient has not since change their opinion so you may not be respecting patient autonomy
what is the personal identity argument against advanced decisions?
some people with dementia undergo radical personality changes so advanced decisions should not be used as the person who needs it is not numerically identical to the person who created it
CRITICAL APPRAISALS!!!!
NOT ON CARDS
what are the potential benefits of systematic reviews?
- include all the available evidence to answer a question
- include research that is unpublished or has been published in non-English language journels
- increase total sample size which also increases levels of certainty and recision
- indicates heterogeneity (variation) among studies
- can indicate the need for further research
- permit sub-group analyses
- permit sensitivity analyses
what study design is used for a diagnosis type of question?
cross-sectional analytic study
what study design is used for an aetiology question?
cohort or population-based case-control study
what type of study design is best for a prognosis question?
cohort study
what study design is best for a treatment question?
RCT or systematic review of RCT
what study design is best for an evaluation question?
qualitative research
what is a critical appraisal?
the process of carefully and systematically assessing the outcome of scientific research to judge its trustworthiness, value and relevance in a particular context.
what are the 3 discrete steps of a critical appraisal?
are the results of the study valid?
what are the results?
can i apply the results to this patients care?