If a clinician seeks consent from a patient using the same
process as other practitioners in their field, is that enough to
demonstrate that they acted reasonably? In Mordel v Royal
Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust [2019] EWHC 2591 (QB) the court
reiterated that the answer is no.
Ms Mordel alleged that the health board missed two opportunities
to screen for Down's syndrome during her pregnancy. One issue
was whether the informed consent process adopted by her
sonographer, and supported by expert evidence, stood up to judicial
scrutiny.
Ms Mordel was Polish and had been living in the UK for six
years. She became pregnant in 2014. This was her first pregnancy.
She met her midwife and advised that she wished to have all
screening tests, including the combined test for Down's
syndrome, carried out at her first ultrasound scan. Her decision
was recorded in her notes.
