Capacity Evaluation Requests in the Medical Setting: A Retrospective Analysis of Underlying Psychosocial and Ethical Factors

Over half of DMC evaluation requests in a general medical setting were unwarranted. Many such requests were motivated by unarticulated psychosocial and ethical factors. DMC evaluation requests appear to serve as a means for indirectly resolving various psychosocial and ethical dilemmas beyond assessing DMC itself. Implications and future directions are discussed.