Consented

A Doctor's Call to End Medical Violence and Reclaim Patient Autonomy

A physician’s bold critique of medical rape culture—and her call for a new model of care that centers consent and empowers patients

Medical culture has a problem with consent—and it’s not just a few bad doctors. Even the best and most caring physicians can fall prey to what Dr. Zed Zha identifies as medical rape culture: a system of beliefs and practices that enable and normalize the violation of patients’ autonomy. From the invention of the speculum to eugenics, Dr. Zha shows how medicine’s culture of violation is deeply entrenched. From the routine teaching of pelvic exams to the dehumanizing language of medical texts, she exposes how medical rape culture persists in everyday practice.  She interlaces these hidden histories of medicine with first-hand patient stories and her own personal journey, identifying four key problems of consent within medical practice:

●       Non-consent: “Doctors know what’s best for the patient.”

●       Forced consent: “If patients are noncompliant, their voices cease to matter.”

●       Inadequate consent: “Doctors can decide what patients need to know.”

●       Contractual consent: “Sign here, then forever hold your peace.”

This systemic misreading of consent robs patients of the right to control what happens to their own bodies and can cause serious harm. Instead, Dr. Zha argues that only a sea change in our healthcare system can stop us from repeating the same mistakes. Finally, consented offers a radical new vision of medical consent culture—one that embraces collectivity, accessibility, and compassion. This provocative book will validate anyone who has been dismissed, blamed, gaslit, or violated in the doctor’s office and inspire those working in the healthcare system to push for change.