Suffering from kidney failure and having fallen into a coma, Mr  Smith urgently required a kidney transplant  When Mr  Smith' s cousin volunteered to donate a kidney, Mr  Smith' s daughter had to decide whether to sign the consent form permitting the transplant  She knew that her father strongly objected to transplantation of organs from live donors on the grounds that these operations caused serious disability to the organ donor
Although she knew her father' s objection was based on a mistaken belief about the danger to kidney donors, she decided not to consent to the surgery
A patient's rights to self-determination impose an obligation on others to accede to the patient's preferences concerning treatment, even when those preferences can only be inferred from a general knowledge of the patient's commitments, beliefs, and desires.