A patient is admitted from a local skilled nursing facility to the outpatient surgery center for surgical debridement of a stage IV sacral pressure ulcer.The perioperative nurse discovers that the patient does not have a signed consent form for the surgery on the chart or in the surgery center.The patient says that she has not talked to the surgeon and that she has many questions regarding her surgery.When informed of this,the surgeon tells the nurse to have the patient sign the informed consent form,and he will review it prior to the surgery.What should the nurse do?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Informed surgical consent requires that the surgeon communicates information about the surgery to the patient,that the patient understands the communication and agrees to the surgery,and that the patient has not been coerced to give consent.As a patient advocate,the nurse should verify with the patient that the surgeon has explained the procedure and answered all her questions.The surgeon is responsible for giving the patient the necessary information and determining the patient's competence to make an informed decision about the surgery.If the patient has further questions,the nurse should notify the surgeon and delay sending the patient to surgery until an informed consent is obtained.

A Patient Is Admitted from a Local Skilled Nursing Facility