BMJ  2006;332:807 (8 April), doi:10.1136/bmj.332.7545.807

Editorial

Gillick or Fraser? A plea for consistency over competence in children

Gillick and Fraser are not interchangeable

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

In most countries the issue of deciding on the ability of children to make decisions about their own medical treatment causes some dilemmas. In Britain people describe the assessment of competence of children in terms of either Gillick competence or the Fraser guidelines, as if they were interchangeable. However, they are not, and their difference needs to be made clear.

The proponents of each concept have failed to explain the differences between them and are encouraging synonymy where none exists. Research ethics committees are insisting upon the use of "Fraser," motivated by the honourable, but false, belief that the term "Gillick competence" is unwelcome to the woman after whom it is named. National organisations are perpetuating this myth. And teachers of medical law are encountering genuine difficulty in trying to resolve this issue.

In UK law a person's 18th birthday draws the line between childhood and adulthood,¹ so that . . . [Full text of this article]

Wessex Regional Centre for Paediatric Surgery, Southampton University NHS Trust, Southampton SO16 6YD
(robert.wheeler@suht.swest.nhs.uk)

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Competence in children has a Scottish twist

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Rapid Responses:

Read all Rapid Responses

Competence in children - don’t forget the Scottish dimension

Mark J Sterrick
bmj.com, 11 Apr 2006 [Full text]

Competence

Arthur MacG Morris
bmj.com, 11 Apr 2006 [Full text]

Beyond “Fraser Competence”

Richard Huxtable
bmj.com, 26 Apr 2006 [Full text]

Safeguarding Children Perspective

Alec Love
bmj.com, 4 Aug 2008 [Full text]

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