We have identified efforts by research ers to investigate interventions which seek to improve information delivery and consideration of information to enhance  informed consent .
The interventions used consistently improve patient knowledge , an important prerequisite for informed consent .
This is encouraging and these measures could be widely employed although we are not able to say with confidence which types of interventions are preferable .
Our results should be interpreted with caution due to the high levels of heterogeneity associated with many of the main analyses although we believe there is broad evidence of beneficial outcomes for patients with the pragmatic application of interventions .
BACKGROUND Achieving informed consent is a core clinical procedure and is required before any surgical or invasive procedure is undertaken .
However , it is a complex process which requires patients be provided with information which they can underst and and retain , opportunity to consider their options , and to be able to express their opinions and ask questions .
There is evidence that at present some patients undergo procedures without informed consent being achieved .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effects on patients , clinicians and the healthcare system of interventions to promote informed consent for patients undergoing surgical and other invasive healthcare treatments and procedures .
AUTHORS ' CONCLUSIONS Informed consent is an important ethical and practical part of patient care .
Recall of the Risks of Forefoot Surgery After Informed Consent
Purpose : To determine the number of risks a patient can recall from the informed consent process prior to surgery and if recall can be improved with a visual aid and to assess patient satisfaction with the informed consent process utilized . Methods : R and omly selected patients , from all patients requiring forefoot surgery , were r and omly assigned into two groups from August 2001 through October 2001 . All patients were asked to recall the risks of surgery and to rate their satisfaction with the informed consent process  at their final routine postoperative visit . Results : There were 19 patients in each group . All patients uniformly expressed their satisfaction with the preoperative informed consent discussion at their final visit . The mean number of the 11 risks recalled per patient was 1.0 for group A ( range , 0–3 ) and 0.94 for group B ( range , 0–4 ) . Conclusion : At the final routine postoperative visit , patients in both groups had poor or no recall of the risks of surgery . The visual aid had no effect on improving recall
We have identified efforts by research ers to investigate interventions which seek to improve information delivery and consideration of information to enhance  informed consent .
The interventions used consistently improve patient knowledge , an important prerequisite for informed consent .
This is encouraging and these measures could be widely employed although we are not able to say with confidence which types of interventions are preferable .
Our results should be interpreted with caution due to the high levels of heterogeneity associated with many of the main analyses although we believe there is broad evidence of beneficial outcomes for patients with the pragmatic application of interventions .
BACKGROUND Achieving informed consent is a core clinical procedure and is required before any surgical or invasive procedure is undertaken .
However , it is a complex process which requires patients be provided with information which they can underst and and retain , opportunity to consider their options , and to be able to express their opinions and ask questions .
There is evidence that at present some patients undergo procedures without informed consent being achieved .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effects on patients , clinicians and the healthcare system of interventions to promote informed consent for patients undergoing surgical and other invasive healthcare treatments and procedures .
AUTHORS ' CONCLUSIONS Informed consent is an important ethical and practical part of patient care .