PATIENTS UNDERSTANDING AND OPINION ABOUT INFORMED CONSENT FOR CORONARY ANGIOGRAPHY IN A RURAL JAPANESE HOSPITAL

Based on an anonymous questionnaire obtained from 102 Japanese in-pati ents at a rural Japanese hospital who underwent coronary angiography, the patients understanding of information about the procedure, their p erception of consent and their attitude toward it were investigated. T he patients were able to recall 63.8% of the contents of the informati on. There was a statistically significant correlation between the pati ents' educational status and the recall test score of the information. Older (65 years old and above) patients had a tendency to entrust dec ision making to their physicians. Only 19.6% of the patients made the decision to undergo a coronary angiography by themselves, After being informed of the risks 40.2% of the patients felt more anxious. In conc lusion, our patients could not recall the contents of the information sufficiently. There still existed a tendency to entrust important deci sions to the physician especially in older patients. The patients had a tendency not to face difficult problems solely by themselves but wit h the support of family members.