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Seniors often drugged
illegally, lawyers say By Helen Henderson, The Nursing homes and hospitals
routinely use mind-altering drugs to subdue elderly patients without
getting the required consent for treatment, a group of "Treatment without
consent seems to be a common practice in nursing homes and hospitals,
especially with respect to drug treatments for older adults with some
degree of cognitive impairment," the Advocacy Centre for the Elderly
says in its latest newsletter. The centre, a legal clinic
for low-income seniors, says several families have made formal complaints
on the issue to the "In every one of these
cases, the (family) has felt that the physician's disregard for the
patient's right not to receive treatment without consent was very
harmful," writes lawyer Graham Webb. Yet the college, a
self-governing body that licenses and regulates doctors, has responded
only with light penalties, essentially reminders of what the law requires,
Webb says. By law, doctors in But Webb says the advocacy
centre receives many calls from family members regarding the care of
physically and/or cognitively impaired seniors. In cases where drug
treatments turn out to be the root of the problem, many times
mind-altering drugs have been administered "entirely without
consent," he says. "The person taking the drugs may not be aware
of doing so, and relatives and friends may have no knowledge of the
drugs." At a time when resources
are short and staff pressed for time, "consent is one of the things
that may get overlooked," says the advocacy centre's executive
director Judith Wahl. "We're not saying
there's an intent to harm, but we do take the issue very seriously,"
Wahl says. "Mind-altering
neuroleptic medications are often given to make a nursing home resident or
hospital patient more easily managed by staff," Webb says.
"Sometimes these medications have little to do with the patient's
medical condition and are simply a form of chemical restraint to alter
behaviour. "In some cases, these
medications could have serious and long-lasting effects," he adds.
"In one case, an expert coroner's geriatric committee reported that
the medications administered without consent contributed to the patient's
death." The None of the treatment
consent complaints made by the advocacy centre's clients has been referred
to the disciplinary committee. "Information only
becomes public when it goes to the disciplinary committee," says Jill
Hefley, spokesperson for the college. "We can't comment on
cases before the complaints committee," Hefley says, "but we do
have fairly comprehensive policy on consent to treatment." Among other things, the
college advises that, while the law states that "consent to treatment
may be express or implied, physicians are strongly advised to obtain
express consent ... and to document the process of doing so." But the Advocacy Centre for
the Elderly says there is "a wide divergence" between the stated
policy of the college and the light penalties meted out by its complaints
committee. Several times, the centre's
clients have appealed decisions on consent issues to In one case, the appeal
board ruled that the complaints committee of the College of Physicians and
Surgeons "did not properly consider the law of consent to treatment
and directed that it reconsider the complaint," says Webb. "The committee did
reconsider the complaint without a hearing, but did not change its
decision," Webb says. The advocacy group says it
hopes that "if more complaints are made to the college about this
issue, the need for better education and understanding by both physicians
and patients would be identified and acted on." It stresses that
mind-altering drugs pose serious risks to the elderly because age affects
the way the body metabolizes drugs, making them more susceptible to
"serious side-effects." Copyright
© 2002 Global Action on Aging |
