Med students may skip getting informed consent from patients for personal procedures

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2022-05-20 00:01

New Zealand

Most medical students said they did not always follow New Zealand’s informed consent guidance for almost all sensitive examinations like breast, rectal or genital exams, according to a survey of 93 University of Auckland students. For female breast exams, only 17 per cent said they always sought consent from conscious patients. The main exception was for the female pelvic examination (not in labour) under anaesthesia, where most students reported being always compliant. However, students' clinical decisions were often driven by directions from superiors. Some said they felt pressured by supervising doctors to forgo the consent process, including one who felt coerced to do a rectal exam under anaesthetic. Reasons for not seeking consent ranged from being unaware of the guidance (both students and senior doctors) to supervisor power imbalances and the med school learning context.

Media release

From: New Zealand Medical Association (NZMA)

5614. Adherence to a national consensus statement on informed consent: medical students’ experience of obtaining informed consent from patients for sensitive examinations

Summary

Many medical students in the study performed sensitive examinations (breast, rectal, genital, and female
vaginal/pelvic examinations) without following the guidance from the New Zealand national consensus
statement for obtaining informed consent (the process of talking that leads to agreement or permission)
from patients. There are many factors related to students, supervisors, and the medical school that are
reasons why these guidelines were not followed. We need to review these findings to ensure a safe learning
environment for patients and our students.

Journal/
conference: New Zealand Medical Journal

Organisation/s: University of Auckland

Funder: N/A

Media Contact/s

Contact details are only visible to registered journalists.