Checking consciousness by touching the patient?

[PMHNP2023]

Is it ok to touch a pt to check responsiveness? If a patient with a triage note stating ems found them unresponsive was lying supine in a bed with a towel over the head and not responding to being called, is it ok to touch them (tap their foot) to check responsiveness? Sounds weird, i know, but there was a patient threatening to call police for assault for doing just that.

[PMHNP2023, RN]

On 4/18/2019 at 8:09 AM, nurse2033 said:

Of course, you would be negligent if you didn't. You can give a brief trial of talking to them, then "Annie are you OK?" shaking, then pulse check. It is your duty to identify and treat any life threatening condition. Unresponsive qualifies.

"Are you ok Annie...you've been touched by...a smooth criminal!"

[JKL33]

18 hours ago, TuxnadoDO said:

In the ED? Like a patient who has been roomed and is waiting to be seen, and has since fallen asleep with a blanket or towel over their head?

Sounds like the OP is referring to situations a little less straightforward than someone actually being asleep - as in the patient has the towel/blanket/coat/anything over their face (so as to obscure observations), and then doesn't respond to verbal stimuli (in order to predictably raise the question of their LOC) and then alleges some sort of assault when people attempt to reasonably ascertain their level of consciousness.