Natanson v. Kline, St Francis Hospital and School of Nursing

Natanson v. Kline, St Francis Hospital and School of Nursing

A landmark case in which for the first time the issue of informed consent was brought into court, giving medical and legal currency to the "reasonable practitioner" standard—i.e., what a reasonable practitioner in the same jurisdiction would disclose to a patient. Mrs Natanson, the plaintiff, suffered severe radiation burns after her post-mastectomy radiation therapy and claimed that the radiologist had not adequately warned her about the risks of treatment before she gave her consent.