Louisiana Revised Statutes 40:1160.3 – Consent to medical examinations; anesthetized patients; penalties
Terms Used In Louisiana Revised Statutes 40:1160.3
- Examination: means a pelvic or rectal examination. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 40:1160.2
- Healthcare provider: means a physician or other healthcare practitioner licensed, certified, registered, or otherwise authorized to perform specified healthcare services consistent with state law. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 40:1160.2
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Patient: means a person who receives or has received medical treatment or services from an individual or institution licensed to provide medical treatment in this state. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 40:1160.2
- Personal healthcare representative: has the meaning as ascribed in Louisiana Revised Statutes 40:1160.2
A. A healthcare provider licensed or certified to practice a profession shall not perform a pelvic or rectal examination, hereinafter referred to as “examination”, on an anesthetized or unconscious patient unless at least one of the following conditions is met:
(1) The patient or the personal healthcare representative provides written consent to the examination, and the examination is necessary for instructional, preventive, diagnostic, or treatment purposes.
(2) The patient or the personal healthcare representative has provided informed consent to a surgical procedure or examination to be performed on the patient, and the performance of an examination is within the scope of care ordered for the surgical procedure or examination.
(3)(a) The patient is unconscious and incapable of providing consent, and the examination is medically necessary.
(b) A healthcare provider who performs an examination pursuant to this Paragraph shall inform the patient that an additional examination was performed and the nature of the examination. The healthcare provider shall notify the patient of the examination at a reasonable time before the patient is discharged from his care.
B. Any violation of the provisions of this Section may constitute grounds for adverse licensure action by the applicable professional licensing board exercising jurisdiction over the healthcare provider.
Acts 2020, No. 269, §1.