In obtaining consent for a surgical operation, does a surgeon have to disclose to a patient the risk of paralysis or death?

Manitoba, Canada


The following excerpt is from Christie v. Jason, 2004 MBQB 207 (CanLII):

The court further held that even if a risk is a mere possibility which ordinarily need not be disclosed, if its occurrence carries serious consequences, as for example, paralysis or death, it should be regarded as a material risk requiring disclosure. At p. 660 of the decision in Hopp v. Lepp, Laskin C.J. stated: In summary, the decided cases appear to indicate that, in obtaining the consent of a patient for the performance upon him of a surgical operation, a surgeon, generally, should answer any specific questions posed by the patient as to the risks involved and should, without being questioned, disclose to him the nature of the proposed operation, its gravity, any material risks and any special or unusual risks attendant upon the performance of the operation. ...

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