If a surgeon performs an unconsented mole removal while the patient is still under anesthesia after an appendectomy, what should the circulating nurse do?

If a surgeon performs an unconsented mole removal while the patient is still under anesthesia after an appendectomy, what should the circulating nurse do?

• A. Report it to the supervisor or proper administrative authority.
• B. Assist the surgeon in the removal
• C. Record it in the chart and continue
• D. Ignore since the patient is under anesthesia

Answer: (A)

Consent establishes what a patient agrees to have done, and a procedure outside that consent isn’t allowed, even if the patient is under anesthesia. Removing a mole without consent is not an emergency that justifies overriding consent, so it’s a breach of ethical and legal standards. The circulating nurse should report the incident to the supervisor or the proper administrative authority. This duty reflects safeguarding the patient’s rights, ensuring the operative plan matches the consent, and initiating the appropriate review or investigation. It’s not appropriate to assist with the unconsented procedure, to record it as if it were planned treatment, or to ignore it, because doing so would perpetuate the violation and potentially harm the patient.

Consent establishes what a patient agrees to have done, and a procedure outside that consent isn’t allowed, even if the patient is under anesthesia. Removing a mole without consent is not an emergency that justifies overriding consent, so it’s a breach of ethical and legal standards.

The circulating nurse should report the incident to the supervisor or the proper administrative authority. This duty reflects safeguarding the patient’s rights, ensuring the operative plan matches the consent, and initiating the appropriate review or investigation. It’s not appropriate to assist with the unconsented procedure, to record it as if it were planned treatment, or to ignore it, because doing so would perpetuate the violation and potentially harm the patient.