Doctors are performing pelvic exams on anaesthetised women without consent. If you’re going into surgery you need to explicitly state you don’t want one. Stay safe out there.

huevos_and_whiskey · 2021-07-26T23:52:38+00:00

Why the f can’t they just practice on conscious people?

Platipus6 · 2021-07-27T03:25:25+00:00

Wow, the lengths they go to. "How was I supposed to know she didn't want xyz done to her while she was asleep, I'm not a mind-reader"

randomgirl34861 · 2021-07-27T04:28:53+00:00

Any time you expose the cervix to a foreign object, your health is at risk because you could introduce new bacteria to a sensitive region of the body. Yes this is invasive and embarrassing, but it could also be increasing our risk for illnesses.

Jamiepappasatlanta · 2021-07-27T02:10:42+00:00

I had a medical student in the emergency room at Northwestern medical center in Chicago give me an internal exam without my consent. He really hurt me. It seemed as if he had never had an anatomy class on women. I was not in there for female trouble so they shouldn’t have let him practice on me. I complained to the attending physician. This is assault.

LevellingUpTime · 2021-07-27T05:10:43+00:00

"What's the problem, it's not like you'd ever find out" says the men who would never agree to prostate exams without permission while unconscious

whydenny · 2021-07-27T08:57:58+00:00

I can't believe this is truly in the name of science.

Are rectal exams performed on men while they're unconscious as well?

trettles · 2021-07-26T23:16:57+00:00

I don’t understand why the training doctors don’t volunteer themselves for these exams. If it’s so important, no big deal & will make them better doctors, then they should be all for it? I’m guessing it’s because it’s intrusive and embarrassing. The same as for the patients they’re raping...

dancedancedance7 · 2021-07-27T04:20:33+00:00

😳 oh my god. Those surgeries don't even necessarily have anything to do with the pelvis!

Angeli_33 · 2021-07-27T07:18:55+00:00

I had a painful lump in my right boob and I went to my GP to get it examined. I also had some freckles on there which were new and I don't sunbathe so? They always preach that for any strange thing going on with your breasts you need to be checked right? Anyway, my regular female GP wasn't available for 3 weeks, but there was a male GP available. I scheduled a phone meeting (due to Covid everything is by phone) and he forgot to call me back. Anyway he called me the next day and when I said my boob hurts, he said for me to come over right away. Then when I got there he tells me to take my top of so he can examine. I said can't I just lift my top? Anyway I hated the whole experience for some reason. Then he checks it out while I'm laying on the thing that patients lay down on. He measures my heart rate and listens to my heart. Then he says it's most likely muscle pain from working out. I said are you sure? He also made a mockery of my worry about freckles, saying I have a lot of moles anyway. I said but one boob hurts constantly right behinf my nipple. I asked him if it were cancerous, could he tell by measuring my blood pressure? He says yep. I ask can we rule out cancer? Again yep. So I leave but I felt super unsettled afterwards so now I'm scheduling a meeting at a private clinic to have a mammography done. Insurance isn't covering it since GP didn't give me a refferal. Anyway :/ I seriously felt liked I flashed a dude for nothing. Like it didn't feel like "oh he's a doctor it's fine". I felt gross. I never want a male doctor again. No thank you. Also I'm cancelling my insurance since nothing ever gets covered anyway.

partypancakesbacon · 2021-07-27T03:46:00+00:00

I went in for surgery and when I came home I’m 90% sure I had semen coming out of me when I wiped after the bathroom. I’ve only been with women the last few years but remembered very well what semen coming out after sex looks like from being married to a man before. Hasn’t happened since or before. So unless they put something in me that dissolved to be the consistency of cum, either the surgeon or anesthetist raped me. I was on pain meds after the surgery that they gave me before discharge, so I was incapacitated in judgement and in too much pain to move or lay down let alone call the police to make a report and get a kit done for semen analysis. It would have been my word against theirs. They know when they have opportunities and they take it.

HamburgerFries8 · 2021-07-27T09:24:43+00:00

I'm completely unable to have a pelvic exam or pap while conscious. I've tried it 3 times and the pain was so indescribable each time and the lady barely went a quarter inch in. I then consented to have it done under anesthesia. As far as I know, there were not going to be men present. But when I saw the instructions for the preparation for the surgery, I couldn't handle the burden of it and canceled. Now I'm back to square one. I don't know what I'm going to tell my primary doctor at my next physical about my failed attempt at a pap and pelvic from the obgyn. The primary doctor's office had been pushing for a pap for quite awhile now. I just don't want this.

FantasticBlood0 · 2021-07-27T08:25:57+00:00

“For the benefit of the society” - EXCUSE ME? My body does not exist for the benefit of the society. I don’t exist for the benefit of the society. Society can kiss my fat ass with their expectations and benefits they expect me to provide!

NotYourCirce · 2021-07-27T00:56:43+00:00

I remember reading about this and this article is from 2018. Is this still happening even now in 2021? I thought something had been done about it

Davina33 · 2021-07-27T06:48:09+00:00

Horrible, I've had surgery in England once, I hope they didn't do that to me.

Mcccy · 2021-07-27T10:04:47+00:00

But remember ladies! We live life on easY moDE /s

zigzagtallywag · 2021-07-27T00:57:08+00:00

This is horrifying.

ApartPersonality · 2021-07-27T04:37:15+00:00

I will never consent to gynecological work with a male physician. I think women who insist that they wouldn’t mind a male gynecologist are peak “cool girl.”

all_or_nothing_bet · 2021-07-26T23:14:36+00:00

They actually asked for my permission for a sweet young student to do a pelvic exam on me while under anesthesia. I was already terrified of the surgery so I said no but under different circumstances I'd definitely allow it.

thediverswife · 2021-07-27T11:10:09+00:00

Wow that’s beyond disgusting

CaliforniaKed · 2021-07-27T12:46:06+00:00

Looks like Texas just outlawed this - in June 2021! No doubt the law was passed due to increased awareness from forums like this. Thank you for sharing!

Boondersnoontch · 2021-07-27T01:27:09+00:00

are pelvic exams and pap smears the same thing? ntl, horrifying i think i just started menopause because of this

discoveringliberty · 2021-07-27T11:57:28+00:00

I encourage everyone to take what action they can on this. I have:

. submitted an FOI request to the NHS (UK) asking for confirmation that this is still happening and if so their administrative practices surrounding this

. spread awareness of this among my friends and family members

. upon receiving my FOI request back I will also write to my MP asking for them to oppose this, and start a petition calling for this to be made illegal in the UK

. you could also write to your local papers, and the trashy ones may be better bets since they can post a shocking headline. I will do this too once my FOI request comes back

Quebeks · 2021-07-27T20:36:25+00:00

I can attest this still happens. When I was in medical school and residency, it would be a line up if people doing pelvic exam after pelvic exam on anesthetized patients. Starting with the attending, then 1-2 residents and then 1-2 medical students. It always made me feel icky but I never spoke out against it. Oh, how I wish I would’ve said something.

pretty_kill · 2021-07-28T00:53:30+00:00

If this was a male rectum exam, it would be illegal already.

eyeroll_city · 2021-07-27T06:11:51+00:00

I’m getting my wisdom teeth out and will be under anesthesia. Do you think this is something I should tell the Oral surgeon? Or do they not practice pelvic exams in oral surgeries?

Typical_Candle_5627 · 2021-07-29T01:55:25+00:00

i’m having a surgery in a few weeks in a state that still allows this apparently. i like my surgeon and find him to be respectful. how do i request this without being awkward? this is insane btw and adding extra stress.

NeedMoreCoffee15 · 2021-07-29T15:20:09+00:00

This is completely stupid! Sure, let’s go practice on unconscious people who did not and would not consent to this!

Wanna give your med students some practice? Hold a weekend clinic and offer free pelvic exams, and free/low cost paps! Hell, hold a few of them on different weekends in different neighboring cities. The number of women who very much want this care, even if it’s for teaching students, and who don’t have access or means is astronomical. Students don’t HAVE to learn every aspect of medicine inside the hospital; there is so much opportunity to learn in other healthcare settings, and it would actually benefit the patients.

Comments