Free choice is only really useful if you know enough

IT GOES without saying that people value the right to make their own healthcare decisions, and for the competent, adult patient, being involved in treatment decisions is regarded as important.

But interestingly, this so-called right to autonomy is a relative newcomer in the medical arena – for many years, the doctor/patient relationship was based on paternalism, or trusting doctors to know best.

This did not mean that patients were no...