does writing a case report require patient consent

by Prof. Kaycee Kutch I 6 min read

Publication of case reports: Is consent required? - PMC

24 hours ago Following legal advice, the British Journal of Psychiatry has adopted a guideline saying that consent must be obtained if an individual patient is described; if consent cannot be obtained, “the report can be published only if all details that would enable any reader (including the individual or anyone else) to identify the person are omitted”. It is important to note that, particularly for case reports in our digital age, the bar may actually be quite high under … >> Go To The Portal


As explained above, informed patient consent is mandatory for the publication of your case reports. Ignoring this requirement can result in a rejection for your work and worse, ruin your relationship and reputation with patients.Mar 6, 2019

Do patients read consent forms?

They often do not read consent forms carefully because they assume that someone else has scrutinised the risks and benefits on their behalf. Interviews with 103 patients showed that many factors influence a decision to take part in medical research (Hastings Center Report 1996;26 (5):25-9).

Is your medical consent properly informed?

Informed consent to medical treatment is fundamental in both ethics and law. Patients have the right to receive information and ask questions about recommended treatments so that they can make well-considered decisions about care. Successful communication in the patient-physician relationship fosters trust and supports shared decision making.

What is a patient consent?

The physician provided his patient with a dense seven-page consent form, in which specific surgical risks, like tissue necrosis, were mentioned; she signed the consent form. However, the physician did not engage in any detailed discussions with his patient ...

Is informed consent possible?

Informed consent is not only required for clinical trials but is an essential prerequisite before enrolling each and every participant in any type of research involving human subjects including; diagnostic, therapeutic, interventional, bioequivalence, social and behavioral studies and for all research conducted domestically or abroad.

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Do case reports require ethical approval?

Case reports and studies intended for quality improvement are often considered not research and do not need IRB approval. Nevertheless, there should be some processes of clearing those studies with respect to ethical handling of patients and related data.

Do you need IRB approval to write a case report?

Yes. Under HIPAA, a case report is an activity to develop information to be shared for medical/educational purposes. Although the use of protected health information to prepare the paper does not require IRB review, the author of a case report must comply with HIPAA.

When or in what case it is not necessary for informed consent?

Exceptions to Informed Consent Several exceptions to the requirement for informed consent include (1) the patient is incapacitated, (2) life-threatening emergencies with inadequate time to obtain consent, and (3) voluntary waived consent.

How do you consent a patient to a case report?

For a patient's consent to publication of information about them in a journal or thesisThe Information will be published without my name/child's name/relatives name attached and every attempt will be made to ensure anonymity. ... The Information may be published in a journal which is read worldwide or an online journal.More items...

Can medical students write case reports?

By writing case reports, medical students can contribute to the first line of evidence for developing new therapies [6–8].

What is the difference between case study and case report?

Case studies are widely used in psychology to provide insight into unusual conditions. A case study, also known as a case report, is an in depth or intensive study of a single individual or specific group, while a case series is a grouping of similar case studies / case reports together.

Is informed consent always required?

Informed consent always must be voluntary (45 CFR 46.116). IRBs should ensure that non-financial incentives are not so great as to diminish the voluntariness of consent or cloud someone's appreciation of risks or potential benefits that might be gained from participating in a study (45 CFR 46.116).

Under which circumstance is written informed consent always necessary?

Consent is necessary only if the study poses a substantial risk to subjects. Parental permission is necessary for subjects younger than 18 years. Subjects younger than 18 years cannot render their own consent.

Is informed consent required?

Informed consent is required for any investigation or treatment proposed to a patient. Understanding of the nature of procedure, benefits and risks are the cornerstones of informed consent. While autonomy is one of the four main ethical principles, I argue that there is no absolute right to autonomy or consent.

What is required to submit a case report?

Journals often have specific requirements for publishing case reports, which could include a requirement for informed consent, a letter or statement from the IRB and other things.

What should I do after writing a case report?

Once you have written a draft of the case report, you should seek feedback on your writing, from experts in the field if possible, or from those who have written case reports before .

Why is it important to write a case report?

the reason you would go to the trouble of writing one, is that the case is sufficiently unique, rare or interesting such that other medical professionals will learn something from it.

Does CHM have funding for publication?

It is best practice to check the journal's Info for Authors section or Author Center to determine what the cost is to publish. CHM does NOT have funds to support publication costs, so this is an important step if you do not want to pay out of pocket for publishing.

Is it free to publish a case report?

Be aware that it may not be free to publish your case report. Many journals charge publication fees. Of note, many open access journals charge author fees of thousands of dollars. Other journals have smaller page charges (i.e. $60 per page), and still others will publish for free, with an "open access option".

Do you need informed consent for a case report?

Although not technically required, especially if the case report does not include any identifying information, some journals require informed consent for all case reports. The CARE guidelines recommend obtaining informed consent AND the patient's perspective on the treatment/outcome (if possible).

Do journals have informed consent?

Journals may have their own informed consent form that they would like you to use, so please look for this when selecting a journal. Once you've identified the case, selected an appropriate journal (s), and considered informed consent, you can collect the required information to write the case report.

Why are case reports important?

As a method of documenting a single clinical observation, case reports offer timely and valuable information , especially with regards to rare diseases. They show medical professionals how fellow practitioners have acted in similar situations and thus aid in the decision-making process by sharing best practices.

What happens if a case is unique but not well documented?

This is not only a waste of your precious time but also a discouragement which might prevent you from producing more case reports in the future.

Can you publish a case report without consent?

Don’t publish a case report without the patient’s consent. As explained above, informed patient consent is mandatory for the publication of your case reports. Ignoring this requirement can result in a rejection for your work and worse, ruin your relationship and reputation with patients.

What is a case report?

A case report is a medical/educational activity that does not meet the DHHS definition of “research”, which is: "a systematic investigation, including research development, testing and evaluation, designed to develop or contribute to generalizable knowledge.".

Does a case report have to be approved by the IRB?

Yes. Under HIPAA, a case report is an activity to develop information to be shared for medical/educational purposes. Although the use of protected health information to prepare the paper does not require IRB review, the author of a case report must comply with HIPAA.

Do journals require an IRB letter?

Background: Many journals now require a letter, or other acknowledgement, from an IRB prior to publication of a case report. Specifically, they wish to know whether IRB approval was obtained or was not required for the described case. The JHM IRBs have adopted a policy to address the following question and answers.

What is a case report?

A case report is an unsystematic clinical observation that states the outcome or response of a single patient to a diagnostic strategy or treatment . Case reports serve to document and share novel cases amongst the medical community for educational purposes.

When case reports describe or discuss unique or rare circumstances, as they often do, it may be difficult or impossible to answer

When case reports describe or discuss unique or rare circumstances, as they often do, it may be difficult or impossible to de-identify those cases such that there is no reasonable expectation that the individuals included can be identified, so patient authorization generally would be required.

When safe harbor de-identification is not possible or the opportunity to identify the patient exists, even after de-ident

When safe harbor de-identification is not possible or the opportunity to identify the patient exists, even after de-identification, the expert determination method for de-identification can be considered. For purposes of de-identification, an expert is defined as: A person with appropriate knowledge of and experience with generally accepted statistical and scientific principles and methods for rendering information not individually identifiable:

Is PHI de-identified under HIPAA?

It is important to understand that determining whether data are de-identified under HIPAA is a more restrictive determination than determining whether private information is individually identifiable under the Common Rule. The HIPAA rule considers PHI as any information that may identify an individual; was created or received by a member of a HIPAA covered entity; and relates to the individual's past, present, or future physical/mental health or condition, health care, or payment for health care. HIPAA recognizes two methods for de-identification of data.

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