[Informed decisions, optimized consent : navigating medical information in the era of medicine 2.0].

Abstract

Among the precepts of medical ethics, the duty to inform holds fundamental importance. The obligation to obtain informed consent before any surgical or medical intervention has evolved progressively over the last decades, in parallel with advances in medical practice. The abundance of medical information accessible online, often unverified, influences patients' perception and understanding. While this access to knowledge empowers individuals, it also complicates the transmission of clear and reliable medical information. Physicians now face patients who are exposed to various, sometimes erroneous, sources, while still confronting traditional challenges such as linguistic and cultural barriers, as well as time constraints due to substantial workloads. The central ethical challenge for practitioners is to develop strategies that navigate these multiple information sources, ensuring that patients have the necessary elements to make fully informed decisions. This requires ensuring the reliability of the information provided and fostering an open and critical dialogue to obtain valid and informed consent.