You must have this consent if you are a medical officer, and you intend to perform a surgical operation on an involuntary patient that suffers from a mental illness.
An involuntary patient means:
- a person who is ordered to be detained as an involuntary patient after a mental health injury or other similar issue
- a correctional patient who has been transferred from a correctional centre to a mental health facility while serving a sentence of imprisonment
- a forensic patient who is detained in a mental health facility, correctional centre or similar place, or released from custody (subject to conditions).
You will need the consent of the patient's designated carer to perform the operation. A surgical operation means a surgical procedure, a series of related surgical operations or surgical procedures, and the administration of an anaesthetic for the purpose of medical investigation.