In your message dated Wednesday 10, July 1996 Peter G wrote :
> A GP colleague of mine (yes-really,I'm not involved!) has recently
> recieved a complaint the crux of which is the fact that,suspecting
> appendicitis,he performed a PR on a 19 year old girl without a
> chaperone.Oddly the complaint at this stage seems to be from her elder
> sister and not the patient.Puting to one side for the moment the wisdom
> of doing a PR under these circumstances(damned if you do,damned if you
> don't),how many of us actually make it a habit-that is for maale GPs-to
> haave a chaperone each time we do a PR or VE on our female patients?
> Logistics can be very difficult and I'd be very interested in a cross-
> section of opinions.
>
A very poignant posting.
I work on the basis that if my sixth-sense/hairs go up on the back of neck kind
of thing, then I get a chaperone. There are some patients (male & female) I do
just not feel safe with (can't really be more specific) at intimate examination
time. Our nurses are very obliging (ok no funny jokes here folks) and fully
understand and appreciate these difficulties.
Has my sixth-sense ever let me down? Touch wood no (so far).
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Dr David J PLews
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