Final answer:
Informed consent requires full disclosure, understanding, and voluntariness. Patients must review the consent document, comprehend the information, and voluntarily agree to participate.
Step-by-step explanation:
The three things required for informed consent are:
- Full disclosure of the nature of the research, including the study's purpose, the procedures to be undertaken, and the potential risks and benefits involved.
- Understanding by the participant of what has been explained. This means that the provided information should be comprehendible and that the participant is capable of understanding it.
- Voluntariness of the participant's decision to engage in the research without coercion or undue influence.
Informed consent ensures that participants are fully aware of the research's implications and have the autonomy to make an educated decision about their participation. For a patient or research subject to give informed consent, they must first review the informed consent document, which outlines all pertinent information about the study. Then, the patient must internally process this information and voluntarily choose to participate, having the option to withdraw at any time without penalty.