When a physical injury or medical condition is painful and interferes with an individual's ability to perform everyday tasks, a doctor typically recommends that a patient undergo some sort of medical procedure or surgery. Prior to any medical procedure, the doctor meets with the patient to explain what will occur during the procedure, answer questions and inform the patient of potential risks or complications.

Once this information has been relayed, a patient is required to provide his or her consent allowing the doctor to proceed. Any individual undergoing a medical procedure, no matter how small or routine, has the right to expect full disclosure from their doctor and has the right to say no to certain aspects of a medical treatment plan.

A woman recently filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against a surgeon who she contends took invasive medical action without her knowledge or consent. According to court documents, the woman sought medical treatment after suffering an injury to her knee. At that time, the woman's doctor recommended she undergo surgery to repair torn cartilage.

In addition to attempting to repair the torn cartilage, the surgeon also removed parts of the woman's femur bone to use in additional testing. The surgeon, however, failed to inform the patient of his plans to remove the bone or obtain the patient's permission to take the bone samples. The woman recently filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against the surgeon. She is seeking to recover damages in excess of $50,000 related to lost wages as well as medical expenses.

Source: The Madison-St. Clair Record, "Doctor removed part of leg bone without consent, suit says," Andrea Dearden, Nov. 12, 2013