1. STH Clinical Ethics Group
Advice to Doctors on non-consensual blood samples pursuant to the Police Reform Act (2002)
Police Officer requests blood sample (e.g. blood alcohol) from a patient under your direct care
Do you consider that taking the sample would be detrimental to the patient’s care?
Tell the police Officer politely (you do not need to argue your case) and document your reasons in the notes
Yes No
Police Officer:
is the patient capable of consenting?
Patient decides whether to consent
Yes
Consents
Declines
No (e.g. unconscious)
Police Medical Practitioner takes sample usually with police witness
Police Medical
Practitioner: is it fitting to take the sample?
Patient risks prosecution for failing to provide
Yes
Note: If / when regains capacity to consent, as judged by a police officer, can withdraw consent to the sample. If he does not consent to the analysis of the sample this is an offence in itself. If consent for the analysis of the sample is withdrawn, this does not mean that the sample cannot be seized as evidence by the police.
Note: Police medical practitioner does not have to give a any reason to police if he does not consider it fitting to take the sample
End
*As a direct medical attendant of the patient, you may not take the sample and the police should not ask you to do so..
Police may ask whether a non-involved doctor could take the sample, but in practice since any of your colleagues could become involved in caring for the patient, we recommend that you insist that the police should provide their own Police Medical Practitioner to take the sample.