The New Types of Informed Consent

Informed consent is an essential issue in medical practice. Recently, new types of informed consent have emerged from doctor-patient relationship. Genetic studies using patients' specimens are regulated by the "Bioethics and Biosafety Act", which mandates every genetic study be performed with given written informed consent. Clinical trials for drug development are regulated by the Korea Good Clinical Practice, which requires a review and approval process by the Institutional Review Board. Organ donation is regulated by the "Organ Donation Act". Informed consent from family members is important for organ donation of the deceased and minors. It is recommended that terminally ill patients have advance directives, but we do not have relevant legislation on this. New types of informed consent stress the justifiable intervention of the Parens Patriae and neutral third party. Along with the legalization, these should be summarized to prevent unnecessary conflicts.