Informed eConsent with PKB
The PKB record is the best place to capture a patient's consent for a procedure. Digital informed consent relies on tools that are customisable, secure, auditable, and accessible. Both PKB Care Plans and Advanced Questionnaires offer capabilities to support the digital informed consent process.
Why
Accessible to all – Patients, carers, and professionals can easily view consent documentation, including consent recorded by a professional.
Rich content – Forms can include text, videos, and links, ensuring patients and carers fully understand the procedure.
Collaborative decision-making – Patients can contribute relevant details, such as their fitness for a procedure, alongside professional assessments.
Flexible consent capture – with either PKB care plans or Advanced Questionnaires, manually or automated sending.
What
PKB care plans and advanced questionnaires can be used to capture consent.
A centralised, accessible record of consent for patients, carers, and professionals.
Rich multimedia content, including text, videos, and links, to support patient understanding.
A collaborative approach where patients can contribute relevant health information.
Flexible consent capture allows professionals to document verbal consent or guide patients through the process.
Ability to capture e-consent signatures.
PKB can handle consent because
Each user is authenticated when adding data, ensuring secure access and accurate records.
All data is securely stored, documenting who entered what and when.
Every version of a care plan is saved, clearly distinguishing data entered by professionals and patients within the consent form.
How with PKB Care Plans
Digital consent can be recorded and signed by both the patient and the professional in a PKB care plan. Watch this short video and view the screenshots below.
The professional
Logs into their PKB account, searches for the patient, clicks Create Plan, chooses the consent form template, and adds the care plan to the patient's record.
The professionals reads the consent plan.
Any section editable by a team professional is completed.
The professional clicks the Save button, and PKB logs the information entered into each field by the professional.
PKB notifies the patient of a new saved care plan and provides a link to the care plan, awaiting the patient's consent.
The Patient
The patient clicks the link in their email to view the care plan and then clicks the Edit Plan button.
The patient reads the care plan and documents their consent.
When patients click the Save button, PKB logs the information entered into each field by the patient.
Day of Surgery or Procedure
The professional can review and edit the care plan on the day of the operation/procedure by following the steps above. Log in to their PKB account, search for the patient.
The professional countersigns the patient's consent; in the professional only edits section. Clicks the Save button, and PKB logs what the professional has entered into each field.
How with PKB Advanced Questionnaires
Consent can be securely captured using PKB’s Advanced Questionnaire (AQ) feature. Teams can create consent questionnaire templates with signature fields for patients and professionals. The advantages of PKB Advanced Questionnaires include the ability to be sent manually to individual patients, in bulk, and also via integration, which automates the sending and retrieval of consent into hospital systems.
This functionality is especially valuable for teams implementing fully digital e-consent forms with built-in electronic signature capture.
Watch the short video below of a patient completing a consent questionnaire in PKB. Hospitals can send consent questionnaires to both registered and unregistered patients.
How The Patient Completes AQ
The patient clicks the link in the email notification or Answers questions in the Notifications section of their record.
The patient reads the questions in the content form.
The patient answers any questions.
The patient signs the consent form and clicks submit.
PKB logs what the patient has entered.
How Professional Send AQ
How professionals send an Advanced Questionnaire (if not automated).
Professional logins into PKB
Searches patient
Clicks send questionnaire
The team have the option to turn on edits for patients and professionals.
Turning on professional edits means that the professional can confirm on the day of surgery.
Once decided, the professional clicks Send.
Professional Completes AQ
The Professional logs in to PKB
Clicks on Messages to find completed AQ or searches for patient and clicks on the patient's Events and Messages section.
Click View
The professional reads the consent and checks the patient's consent and signature.
The professional signs their consent and clicks amend " and submit.
PKB logs what the professional has entered.
Day of Surgery or Procedure
The professional reviews and amends the questionnaire on the day of the operation/procedure. This is available to all AQ if the team turn on professional edits.
The professional logs in to their PKB account, searches for the patient and the completed the questionnaire.
Clicks View
The professional countersigns the patient's consent.
Clicks the Save button.
PKB logs what the professional has entered.
Example Consent Templates
Oncology consent care plan templates: two informed consent care plans and workflows for cancer patients
Colonoscopy consent care plan template: how to provide informed consent to the patient digitally
Professional edit only care plan example: showcasing the feature.
Example Smart Goals for PKB eConsent
Implementing electronic consent (eConsent) via PKB using the Care Plan functionality allows teams to create a secure, auditable, and collaborative consent process.
Because PKB Care Plans allow for professional-only edit sections (for the clinician's signature/counter-signature) and patient-editable sections (for the patient's signature and confirmation), they are ideal for capturing a full digital audit trail.
1. Increase eConsent Adoption Rate
Specific: Transition from paper-based consent forms to PKB Care Plan eConsent for all elective surgical patients.
Measurable: Achieve a 100% completion rate of digital consent forms via PKB Care Plans prior to the day of the procedure.
Achievable: Using the "Create Plan" feature with a pre-built "Consent Form" template allows clinicians to send forms instantly during or after a consultation.
Relevant: Reduces the risk of lost paper forms and ensures the consent process is started well in advance of surgery.
Time-bound: Reach this target within 6 months of the initial rollout.
2. Improve Clinical Efficiency
Specific: Reduce the time spent on "paperwork" during morning admissions by having the patient and clinician pre-sign the eConsent Care Plan.
Measurable: Reduce the average time for the "surgical check-in" process by 5 minutes per patient.
Achievable: Clinicians can use the Professional Edit-Only section to countersign the patient’s pre-filled consent on their tablet or workstation on the morning of the procedure.
Relevant: Frees up clinical staff for patient care and reduces delays in the theatre schedule.
Time-bound: Achieve this reduction within 3 months of the team becoming 100% active on the eConsent workflow.
3. Enhance Patient Education and Informed Consent
Specific: Ensure every eConsent Care Plan includes embedded multimedia (videos/links) to help patients understand the risks and benefits.
Measurable: 100% of consent care plan templates will have at least two verified educational resources embedded.
Achievable: PKB Care Plans support rich text, hyperlinks, and embedded videos that patients can review at home.
Relevant: Improves the "informed" part of informed consent, reducing patient anxiety and the likelihood of late-stage cancellations.
Time-bound: All active consent templates to be updated with resources within 8 weeks.
4. Zero "Incomplete" Consent Audits
Specific: Eliminate common errors found in paper forms, such as missing signatures, illegible handwriting, or missing dates.
Measurable: Achieve 0% illegibility and 100% signature completion in a monthly audit of 50 random digital consent records.
Achievable: PKB’s audit trail automatically logs the date, time, and identity of the person (clinician or patient) making entry, ensuring no field is left "blank" without a digital footprint.
Relevant: Improves medicolegal safety and ensures compliance with CQC and organisation information governance standards.
Time-bound: Achieve a Clean Audit (zero errors) within 4 months of launch.
5. Reduce DNA (Did Not Attend) Rates via Pre-Op Engagement
Specific: Use the eConsent Care Plan as a digital touchpoint to confirm the patient is still proceeding with their surgery.
Measurable: Reduce the DNA rate for the surgical list by 5%.
Achievable: By sending the eConsent Care Plan -- weeks before surgery and asking the patient to "Save" their signature, the team receives a notification of engagement.
Relevant: Early identification of patients who no longer wish to proceed allows the team to reallocate theatre slots to other patients on the waitlist.
Time-bound: Measure and report the reduction in DNAs at the 12-month post-implementation review.
6. Patient Access
Specific: Provide patients with 24/7 access to their signed consent forms and supporting educational materials to ensure consent is truly "informed."
Measurable: 85% of patients confirm via post-op survey that they reviewed their consent form and educational links in PKB at least 48 hours prior to surgery.
Achievable: Embed links to procedure-specific videos/leaflets within the PKB Care Plan so patients can interact with the information before signing.
Relevant: Moves from "paper-signing" to "informed engagement," improving patient satisfaction and reducing last-minute cancellations.
Time-bound: Reach the 85% engagement target within 6 months of implementation.
Premetrics
To effectively demonstrate the impact of PKB features, it is essential to gather baseline (pre-metric) data before implementation. These metrics provide a foundation for measuring improvements, identifying efficiencies, and validating the outcomes achieved by your team. For guidance on setting specific goals and capturing meaningful outcomes from your team's use of PKB, get in touch with your PKB Success Project Manager.
Further Information
Information Governance Wiki: No consent is required for a healthcare provider to store data in PKB.
Consent for storing patient-entered data is automatically captured during PKB's registration process. You can view the patient experience on the joinpkb.com registration page.
The Information Governance Wiki: Explains the privacy policy and user agreement.
Consent for sharing data is handled through the sharing settings in PKB.
Pre-Metrics for a Team: Examples and methodology for collecting pre-metrics
Patients Know Best Resource Hub | Deploy | Developer | Trust Centre | Manual | Research | Education | Release Notes
© Patients Know Best, Ltd. Registered in England and Wales Number: 6517382. VAT Number: GB 944 9739 67.