Implied Consent Is Not Informed Consent: What the Grace Schara Case Should Teach Us All
The principle of informed consent is foundational to ethical medical care. It’s a sacred trust—one that respects the autonomy, dignity, and humanity of the patient. But increasingly, we’re witnessing a dangerous erosion of this principle. In its place? A distorted, diluted concept known as implied consent—used not as a tool of empowerment, but as a shield against accountability.
The tragic and wrongful death of Grace Schara is just one chilling example.
What Is Informed Consent?
Informed consent means that a patient—or their legally authorized representative—is given full, honest information about:
The proposed treatment or intervention
Its risks and benefits
Reasonable alternatives
The option to decline
The potential outcomes of refusing
Only after receiving this information should a patient or decision-maker be asked to sign a consent form or verbally agree. And that agreement must be voluntary, competent, and informed—not coerced or hidden within pages of fine print.
What Is Implied Consent?
Implied consent is a legal and ethical grey zone, often used in emergency settings when a patient is unconscious or otherwise unable to consent. It assumes that a reasonable person would want life-saving treatment.
But here’s the danger: implied consent is now being used well beyond its intended scope—as a retroactive excuse for performing invasive procedures or implementing protocols without proper disclosure or permission.
Grace Schara’s Case: A Weaponized Loophole
Grace Schara was a vibrant 19-year-old with Down syndrome. She entered a hospital for mild COVID symptoms and never made it out alive. Her family—especially her father, Scott Schara—has tirelessly exposed the series of decisions that led to her death.
Among the most egregious: a cocktail of dangerous medications administered without informed consent, a DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) order placed without family approval, and the denial of visitation to the very people who could have intervened on her behalf.
When the Schara family took this to court, the hospital’s legal team invoked implied consent as part of their defense.
"She was admitted to the hospital, therefore she consented to the care."
This line of reasoning defies both logic and ethics. Admission to a hospital is not a blank check for any and all treatment. It does not excuse providers from the obligation to inform, explain, obtain permission, and respect patient rights. Yet this was the shield used to justify a cascade of fatal decisions—administering sedatives, placing a DNR, and ultimately withdrawing care.
And the jury, tragically, accepted it.
The Myth of the Hospital as a Safe Haven
Too many Americans still believe that once you or a loved one enters the hospital, you’re in good hands. But the Grace Schara case and countless others reveal the cold truth: you are only as safe as the protocols, ethics, and transparency of the institution you enter—and the strength of your advocate.
We must stop assuming hospitals operate with the patient’s best interests at heart. We must start asking hard questions. And we must never assume consent is implied when lives are at stake.
Why You Need an Advocate
No one expects to be gaslit while lying in a hospital bed. No one expects their loved one’s rights to be ignored. But it happens—every day.
Having a medical advocate is no longer optional. It is essential.
An advocate:
Ensures treatments are properly explained
Demands that informed consent be honored
Pushes back when care plans are unethical, unsafe, or unwanted
Holds providers accountable
Serves as a second set of ears, eyes, and moral compass
What Remnant Healthcare Offers
At Remnant Healthcare, we believe in ethical, patient-centered care. That includes professional medical advocacy for individuals and families navigating a healthcare system that too often prioritizes policy and profit over people.
We offer:
1:1 patient advocacy and education
Help reviewing hospital records and treatment plans
Support during admissions, discharges, and critical decisions
Representation during meetings with providers
Assistance with DNR/DNI decisions and code status clarification
Advance care planning and durable power of attorney documentation
Emotional and spiritual support for caregivers and patients alike
We are 100% supporter-funded, and we are here for the people who have been abandoned or ignored by the mainstream system. Our goal is to restore dignity to medicine—one patient at a time.
“Consent is not a checkbox—it is a conversation. And without advocacy, that conversation can be silenced. Nobody thinks they need an advocate, until they do. Don’t wait until it’s too late. Have an advocacy plan in place before an emergency arises”
— Kimberly Overton, BSN, RN, BC-FMP
Founder, Remnant Healthcare
💔 Honor Grace by Taking Action
If you want to truly honor Grace Schara’s legacy, don’t just mourn—mobilize. Educate yourself. Designate an advocate. Refuse to be gaslit. And support organizations like Remnant Healthcare that are fighting every day for ethical, informed, and accountable care.
Because no one should have to learn the difference between implied and informed consent through the death of a loved one.
About the Author:
Kimberly Overton, BSN, RN, BC-FMP, is a Registered Nurse, entrepreneur, and fierce advocate for medical freedom and informed consent. With a background in critical care and acute patient management, she bore witness to the systemic failures of a healthcare system corrupted by profit-driven protocols—protocols that led to medical murders disguised as care.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Kimberly made the bold decision to resign from traditional bedside nursing, standing in protest against coercive mandates, the unethical use of Remdesivir, and the rollout of dangerous, ineffective COVID “vaccines.” This defining moment propelled her to establish Nurse Freedom Network, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to empowering nurses, safeguarding patient rights, and exposing corruption within the healthcare system.
Today, she continues her mission at the bedside as a Hospice nurse, where she brings dignity, presence, and compassion to the end-of-life journey—honoring the sacred transition and advocating for comfort, truth, and informed decisions. Her experience in hospice care further reinforces the importance of understanding every medical intervention and upholding the nurse’s role as a protector of patient safety and peace.
Expanding on her mission, she launched Remnant Healthcare, providing holistic, patient-centered alternatives that honor medical autonomy, informed consent, and compassionate care. As host of Nurses Out Loud, Kimberly amplifies the movement for healthcare reform, medical freedom, and the unwavering defense of human dignity.
Originally from Boston, Massachusetts, and now residing in Hendersonville, Tennessee, her mission is to disrupt the broken system, hold the profiteers accountable, and reclaim healthcare on a foundation of truth, ethics, and respect for human life—restoring humanity to the healing profession.
📲Connect with me and find all of our platforms in one place:
Watch my media interview on With The Wind with Dr. Paul Thomas & DeeDee Hoover which aired on CHDTV.
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Thank YOU, Kimberly, for bringing this and many other urgent matters in the medical field to the LIGHT! Thank you for your boldness and for helping to mobilize others!! Blessings!! Keep it up!
I am a retired 30 year RN who worked ER, home health, quality, risk, compliance, medical staff quality etc. Too many times I have seen poorly executed informed consent. Patients coerced into treatments they didn’t understand or didn’t want, especially during COVID when patients were not allowed to have the basic patient right of choice in care .