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Hello Peter > 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. > Best wishes, > Peter Glover > Church View Surgery > Rayleigh > Essex > -- > Peter Glover > For some years now I have not done an "intimate" examination in the surgery without a practice nurse. I do not keep any equipment for these examinations in my comfortable sitting-room like consulting room, but take them to the much more utilitarian treatment room. If you ask me why, it is probably just that I feel uncomfortable - even though the evidence suggests that most complaints come from accidental and innocent manoveures eg brushing against a patient's chest while putting on a bp cuff. I think it probably makes the patients more comfortable to have a chaperone, too (though I've never asked them) -- Bradley Cheek - [log in to unmask] (Well close Square) Connecting via Demon Internet Ltd %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%