If you've heard about teaching hospitals performing nonconsensual pelvic or prostate exams while patients are under anesthesia, be reassured that this does not happen here. 

You will always be asked for your informed consent before a pelvic exam is done. You may choose to decline student involvement, which doesn't affect your care in any way.

"We have had inquiries about this in the past and have set guidelines," says OB-GYN Karen Carlson, MD. "Patients going to the Operating Room are asked for consent if an exam is needed during a surgery, and the patient meets the student who will be caring for them before the operation."

Nebraska Medicine follows the Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics (APGO) policy:

"We recommend that learners in the clinical setting, including in the operating room when the patient is under anesthesia, should only perform a pelvic examination for teaching purposes when the pelvic exam is:

• Explicitly consented to;
• Related to the planned procedure;
• Performed by a student who is recognized by the patient as a part of their care team; AND
• Done under direct supervision by the educator."

Read the full statement from APGO.