Patient’s autonomy is a universally recognized principle. Every patient has the right to know and make decisions about his/her healthcare choices. Patient’s consent, legally mandatory, is a functional expression of this autonomy. Unfortunately, it is also a major source of concern for healthcare providers at times leading to unnecessary and avoidable litigation.

One big reason for improper consent is the lack of knowledge / awareness about appropriate protocols, especially in case of unanticipated exigencies and contingencies faced by doctors in their day-to-day practice. This shortcoming requires appropriate solutions which are applicable and relevant to the practitioners of modern medicine across the globe and also have to be in tune with the ‘accepted medical practice’ as laid down in Bolams law.

Doctor groups and / or medical societies, therefore, need to decide on the best medical practices that are good for the patient and are legally correct. These practices must also be logical, and scientifically correct, and the process to arrive at the outcome must be transparent to become legally acceptable. This initiative is therefore an attempt to draft a global SOP on patients' consent by involving eminent doctors and medical societies in the drafting process and keeping the whole process participative, consultative, and transparent.