Does a doctor have a duty to disclose information to a patient?

This argument is without merit on these facts. The duty of a doctor to disclose information to a patient does not arise only after the patient has asked specific questions or informed the doctor of specific concerns. As noted by Laskin C.J. in Hopp v. Lepp, the patient is in a position of reliance on the doctor’s special skill, knowledge and experience. Moreover, as already noted, the doctor did not provide this patient with sufficient information to trigger the responses that might have led her to disclose her concerns or ask further questions. Had she even been advised of the seriousness of the injury, she might have asked if there were other known procedures that might potentially work and told him of the importance to her of use of her arm. Surely, a doctor can assume that a patient would like to be restored to full health, if possible. To suggest that a patient should have to inform the doctor of the importance of being returned to her normal state before a doctor tells her that she could be disabled is flawed reasoning.