Why is explaining the “do nothing” outcome part of a dentist’s professional disclosure obligation?
Because patients deciding about treatment need to understand the consequences of the option they have always had available, which is to continue doing nothing, and the doctor has a professional duty to make sure that consequence is honestly disclosed. The case presentation walks through three or four treatment options. The do-nothing option is the fourth or fifth: what happens to the patient’s dental situation if they decline all of the recommended treatments and continue with their current trajectory. The disclosure is not a scare tactic. It is honest description of the clinical reality. Periodontal disease continues. Bone loss progresses. Adjacent teeth migrate into spaces left by extractions or losses. Function continues to degrade. Aesthetic outcomes worsen. The do-nothing description should be specific to the patient’s actual clinical situation, projecting realistically what the next several years look like without treatment. The patient absorbing this information makes a more informed decision in either direction. They may accept treatment understanding what they avoid. They may decline understanding what they accept. Either outcome is the patient’s right. The disclosure is the doctor’s obligation. Skipping it shortchanges the informed-consent foundation of the entire process.
If the answers you are finding here resonate with you, my team and I work with a small group of clients each year. The next step is a complimentary Discovery Consultation and Practice Review with Dr. McAnally.
