ABSTRACT
The concept which was found to be most controversial and which became the starting point of the considerations is informed consent. The Czech Republic is a typical post-communist country so it serves as a good example. This chapter presents some reflections about experiences with informed consent in a post-communist country. The reflections are based on results of the research project 'Informed consent in the Czech Republic' carried out in 2004-2006 at the Institute for Medical Ethics and Nursing Third Faculty of Medicine, Charles University in Prague. The survey done in the Czech Republic in recent years has shown that Czech patients did not accept informed consent in its original meaning. This could be due to retardation of democratic processes in a post-communist country. An alternative interpretation leads to an understanding this non acceptance as call for physicians of high moral quality. In this context people should consider some revival of medical deontology and virtue ethics.
