Legal Topics > Personal Injury and Health > Medical Malpractice

Doctor's Duty to Disclose

LegalMatch Law Library Managing Editor, Ken LaMance, Attorney at Law

What is a Doctor's Duty to Disclose?

A doctor is required to disclose all relevant information regarding your medical treatment in order to allow you to make a decision about your own treatment. If a doctor fails to disclose pertinent information, he may be liable for medical malpractice.

What Information Does a Doctor Have to Disclose?

The doctor's duty to disclose includes:

What the treatment involves
The possible risks of receiving the treatment as well as the possible risks of not receiving it
The success rate of the operation
Alternative treatments

Does a Doctor Have to Disclose Every Possible Risk or Alternative Treatment?

Typically, a doctor is held to the standard of care of a "reasonable doctor". Thus, a doctor need only disclose that which a "reasonable doctor" would disclose. Therefore, although voodoo may be a form of alternative treatment, if a reasonable doctor would not tell a patient of that option, a doctor does not have a duty to disclose it.

Can I Sue my Doctor for a Breach of His Duty to Disclose?

To bring a successful suit against a doctor, you must prove not only that he failed to disclose some pertinent information, but also that you suffered some injury as a consequence of that failure.

If your doctor does not tell you of some serious risk of a surgery, but you undergo the procedure without complications, you cannot sue the doctor because you have not suffered any harm.
If you undergo the surgery and suffer from a harm you were not informed of, you probably can sue, unless there is evidence that you would have gone through with the surgery even if you had known the risk. If you would have gone through with the surgery even with the disclosure, you cannot claim that the doctor's failure to disclose caused your harm.