Exploring the ethics of giving patients the right to assess their surgeon’s clinical performance history has won two Australian researchers a highly sought after Eureka Prize for Research in Ethics. 

“When a patient consents to an operation they are relying on full disclosure of all foreseeable risks and these risks will vary according to the level of ability of the available surgeons,” said Dr Steve Clarke, Charles Sturt University academic and member of the University's Canberra-based Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics (CAPPE) who was awarded the prize jointly with Justin Oakley, director of the Centre for Human Bioethics at Monash University. 

“How can you give informed consent without this knowledge? The clinical performance of individual surgeons should be made available as part of the process of giving informed consent,” argued Dr Clarke, who is a Research Fellow and Lecturer in Philosophy in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at Charles Sturt University.

Dr Clarke and Dr Oakley claim that ethical considerations clearly indicate that patients are entitled to information about their surgeon’s past performance.

“Patients should be provided with the performance histories of available doctors in order to properly understand the risks they are exposing themselves to when choosing to be operated on by a particular surgeon,” said Dr Clarke.

In congratulating the prize winners, CSU Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) Professor Ross Chambers stressed the importance of critical research  which linked professional and ethical issues.

 The Eureka Prize for Research in Ethics is awarded for the investigation of theoretical or practical ethical issues.  It recognises research of value to the Australian community which challenges established views,” he said. 

The Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics is funded by the Australian Research Council (ARC) under its Special Research Centre Program to conduct leading edge research; provide policy input; and promote community discussion and professional dialogue. CAPPE is a collaboration between Charles Sturt University, the University of Melbourne and the Australian National University.