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Difficulty: EasyAdvance Directives and Informed Consent

A client is sitting in the preoperative area waiting for a scheduled hernia repair. The surgeon has finished explaining the procedure, and the client states they understand and are ready to proceed. What is the designated role of the practical nurse (PN) regarding the informed consent document in this situation?

  1. Acting as a witness to the client signing the formAnswer
  2. B
    Explaining the potential risks and benefits of the surgery
  3. C
    Describing alternative treatment options to the client
  4. D
    Instructing an assistive personnel to collect the client's signature

Answer

Acting as a witness to the client signing the form
The correct action is acting as a witness to the client signing the form. Once the healthcare provider has explained the procedure, risks, benefits, and alternatives, the practical nurse's legal responsibility is to witness the client voluntarily signing the informed consent document.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the PN's legal scope of practice regarding informed consent.
The provider is responsible for education; the nurse is responsible for witnessing and advocacy.
Understanding legal boundaries prevents out-of-scope practice.
2
Evaluate the distractors against the provider's responsibilities.
Explaining risks, benefits, and alternatives are strictly provider duties.
The provider performing the procedure must ensure the client fully understands the medical details.
3
Evaluate the delegation option.
Delegating the signature collection to an unlicensed assistive personnel is inappropriate.
Witnessing consent requires nursing judgment to assess if the client is signing voluntarily and is competent at that moment.

Key Concept

The practical nurse's role in informed consent is limited to witnessing the client's signature and ensuring the consent is given voluntarily after the provider has explained the procedure.
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Topics

Advance Directives and Informed Consent

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