Imagining Compassionate Consent for Digital Mental Health Services

Scientist, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

Patients are asked to provide consent when accessing digital mental health services. However, consent is often uninformed as privacy notices and consent forms are too long and difficult to understand. If compassion is described as “an individualized, person-centred approach that includes the patient as an active participant in decision-making regarding their care”, then are current digital mental health consent processes compassionate? Nelson explores whether patient experiences with digital mental health consent affect their views on compassion of the technology, healthcare providers, and organizations providing care. He will collaborate with patients to provide recommendations and co-create a compassionate consent process.