Imagine you have to remember 100 phone numbers having 8 digits in each phone number. If by any chance you are able to group the phone numbers with same first 4 digits, it is easy to remember the phone numbers in the same group as the first 4 digits will be memorized effortlessly. This is a very powerful tool in memorizing phrases. For instance the meanings of "Informed Consent" and "Informed Decision" can be studied together although they have different meanings as both terms start with the word "informed".
Informed Consent is a term which is associated with the concept of conflict of interest. In simple terms, conflict of interest means you have more than one interest towards a particular aspect. Suppose you are the judge of a debate competition where your son is a member of one of the teams. On one hand your interest is to assess the talents of each member of the respective debate teams. On the other hand your interest is to give preference to your own son. This is a very common scenario in everyday life. Conflict of interest may lead to unfavourable situations for the "victim" as well. For instance suppose one of the interviewees for a potential job is known to you as you have dealt with him/her in a project wherein as per your personal judgement he/she is not a good performer. If you are the interviewer, your personal judgement on the particular person may become detrimental to his/her successful performance in the interview.
As a professional, it is not ethical to hide a conflict of interest. However, there is a mechanism to deal with this situation which is called obtaining the informed consent. In my personal experience, I had to interview one of my own RICS candidates as a key person for a project representing the Contractor. It was compulsory for me to assess this person as the Employer (Fidic terminology for Client) as the position was related to my field of expertise. I therefore informed "all affected parties" namely my reporting manager, Consulting Engineer, Consultant Quantity Surveyor and the Contractor on the subject conflict of interest and obtained "informed consent" to interview the candidate. Therefore in simple terms, Informed Consent is a consent obtained to proceed for a certain process after knowing the repercussions of the same.
In contrast, Informed Decision is a decision based on facts or information. For instance, suppose you want to choose which education system is better for your child. Prior making this decision, you often research on the different education systems available within the market and make a choice. Sometimes, this may be a decision taken by a professional by consulting another professional who often possesses more expertise on a subject matter. Suppose if you are a consultant quantity surveyor assessing a Claim or a Variation (in NEC terminology both claims and variations have got a common name called "Compensation Event") wherein you need to refer to the Law of the Country which you are unfamiliar with. In this case, you can obtain professional advice from a lawyer which will then become an "Informed Decision". However, please be aware that you cannot hold that particular lawyer responsible if something goes wrong within your report. This is the adherence to one of the ethical standards of RICS called "Take Responsibility".
Informed Consent is a term which is associated with the concept of conflict of interest. In simple terms, conflict of interest means you have more than one interest towards a particular aspect. Suppose you are the judge of a debate competition where your son is a member of one of the teams. On one hand your interest is to assess the talents of each member of the respective debate teams. On the other hand your interest is to give preference to your own son. This is a very common scenario in everyday life. Conflict of interest may lead to unfavourable situations for the "victim" as well. For instance suppose one of the interviewees for a potential job is known to you as you have dealt with him/her in a project wherein as per your personal judgement he/she is not a good performer. If you are the interviewer, your personal judgement on the particular person may become detrimental to his/her successful performance in the interview.
As a professional, it is not ethical to hide a conflict of interest. However, there is a mechanism to deal with this situation which is called obtaining the informed consent. In my personal experience, I had to interview one of my own RICS candidates as a key person for a project representing the Contractor. It was compulsory for me to assess this person as the Employer (Fidic terminology for Client) as the position was related to my field of expertise. I therefore informed "all affected parties" namely my reporting manager, Consulting Engineer, Consultant Quantity Surveyor and the Contractor on the subject conflict of interest and obtained "informed consent" to interview the candidate. Therefore in simple terms, Informed Consent is a consent obtained to proceed for a certain process after knowing the repercussions of the same.
In contrast, Informed Decision is a decision based on facts or information. For instance, suppose you want to choose which education system is better for your child. Prior making this decision, you often research on the different education systems available within the market and make a choice. Sometimes, this may be a decision taken by a professional by consulting another professional who often possesses more expertise on a subject matter. Suppose if you are a consultant quantity surveyor assessing a Claim or a Variation (in NEC terminology both claims and variations have got a common name called "Compensation Event") wherein you need to refer to the Law of the Country which you are unfamiliar with. In this case, you can obtain professional advice from a lawyer which will then become an "Informed Decision". However, please be aware that you cannot hold that particular lawyer responsible if something goes wrong within your report. This is the adherence to one of the ethical standards of RICS called "Take Responsibility".
Good explanation.
ReplyDeleteThank you
Delete