P50: Looking for the best: Video vs written informed consent in coronary angiography procedures

Abstract

Background:

Informed consent practices in healthcare are a fundamental element of patient-centred care; however, the traditional written description of the medical procedure for obtaining informed consent seems to have several limitations. Aim: This research aimed to evaluate the effects of an alternative method of obtaining informed consent, based on a short informative video for patients waiting to undergo a coronary angiography procedure in Italy.

Methods:

The study involved 40 participants, 28 males and 12 females (mean age: 68.55, SD = 13.03), equally divided into two groups, one that received video informed consent and the other the traditional written one. Each group was asked to fill out two questionnaires, one created ad hoc by the authors to measure the level of understanding of the information provided and the perception of usefulness of informed consent, and the other the DASS-21 scale, able to assess anxiety, depression and stress levels.

Results:

Comparing the results of the two groups showed that informed consent via video enabled participants to better understand the information provided, as well as feel more confident in their subjective understanding of it, while perceiving informed consent via video as more useful than the traditional one. Video informed consent did not lead to higher levels of anxiety, depression, or stress among participants.

Conclusion:

it can be hypothesized that video formats could represent a more useful and understandable alternative to traditional informed consent in the coronary angiography procedure sector.