To think that a hospital should have a female gynecologist?

[crazyspaniel]

My local hospital only has male gynecologists. If I want to see a female practitioner I have to travel 40 miles. In the end I went to my local hospital and found the whole experience somewhat traumatic - the fact that the doctors were male was part of the reason for finding it so horrible and humiliating.

Is it really so hard to hire a female gynecologist? I get that consultants are often of a generation when not many women went into medicine (and particularly surgery), but there are now more women than men becoming doctors and one of the doctors in the room was SHO level (or whatever they call them now), so not of that generation. I really think this is one area of medicine where there should be female quotas and where each hospital should have at least one female practitioner.

What a strange tread, and strange discussion to have.
Would you refuse a top specialist/gyno to look at you/ examine you if you had a genuine problem, and needed expert opinion quickly, where your life depends on it?
On two occasions when I was examined by male gyno, I found him to be polite, professional, true gentlemen, and light handed, he was professional and very good at what he does, most of all he was expert at diagnosing a condition, and swift to recommend course of treatment, thanks to him I am OK today.

I don't think yabu wanting intimate exams carried out by a female, though think you should drive the 40 miles as hospitals can't be expected to have male female specialist pairs. As to 'once you've had a baby you won't care', well, I've had a baby and I cared then that I only had women with me and women stitching me and I still care and do not want a male performing intimate exams on
me.

Well done sardine you have eloquently expressed what my gut feelings are on this matter and everyone else who says just get over it
How unfeeling and callous you are and I challenge you to go
into your street now naked and see what it feels like then you can maybe understand the depth of horror that we feel under these circs.#

Now I always ask for a female and even when I wait I always get one and even then it depends on the personality on how brusque they are but that doesn't matter to me .

It matters that she is female.

Actually Cocoflower if you choose to see a female solicitor because she is female that is lawful. Some divorce clients prefer a solicitor of their own gender because they will never trust someone of the other gender again; that applies to mean and to women.

But a firm of solicitors cannot lawfully set out to recruit a woman to act for such clients.

Similarly if I choose (which I don't!) not to enter shops where a black person is serving but go to the rival establishment where a white person is serving - that's my right. But the trader can't refuse to serve a white or a black person.

I guess you have a point- I guess it depends why they refuse that particular sex

If it is just because they believe they are inferior based on predjudice that is sexist.

If it due to psycholgical issues or past bad experiences and so on then this being made into a sexisit issue is unfair

I agree with OP - some women may have abuse issues, and can only just about cope with having a woman see them.

I can see that some women have issues but if they have, it is up to them to find a way around it, in this case travel further. I want my local hospital to appoint the best person for the job, not take second best because they need a woman.
Women can't have it both ways-we want equal opportunities-and that means for everything in my book, and not cherrypicking jobs where men are excluded.

Thats a little cold hearted exotics

Agree exoticfruits best person for the job, if and when you need to see specialist/gynaecologist, you probably have a good reason for it(you have been referred to one by your general practitioner) that is hardly a time to be dwelling on male/female issues, after all it's your health in question.

Personally I'm not fussed, but think you should have the option if you feel uncomfortable.

IME when I was having a lot of smear tests regularly, I always hoped for a male doctor to do it, they were always more gentle. The female doctors and nurses always seemed to assume that as they didn't find it uncomfortable when they have a smear, then I wouldn't either. I also always found men more sympathetic to pain, I guess having no frame of reference themselves helped there.

strictlovingmum if someone needs gynaecological treatment as eg a consequence of abuse, that hardly qualifies as "dwelling on male/female issues", surely?

I had a colleague once who was married to a (male) gynaecologist. According to her, he came in from work one night, announced he was knackered and never wanted to see another fanny again. To which she replied, "do you mean professionally or socially, cos if it's both, I've wasted a tenner getting my bikini line waxed".

Any gyaenocologist that I have seen has been very professional and certainly the last one I saw was utterly wonderful, so kind and calm-I would defy anyone to find a better female one.
The whole experience isn't very nice-whoever you have. Until relatively recently all nurses were female and I think that men got short shrift if they didn't want them giving them baths, getting bedpans etc-along the lines of 'don't be silly -I've seen it all before' and yet women have to be treated differently.
I am all for equality-but it does mean you win some, some lose some. Men have to let women do anything-front line army, fireman etc and yet women turn around and say 'that is a woman's job'!

carabos The old jokes are the best, like the gynaecologist's wife who says as he comes into the house "Hello dear, had a nice day at the orifice?" :o

SardineQueen, I didn't understand from the opening post, there is an issue of abuse in this case, but in my case where there was an issue of an serious illness, or begging of it, then there is no time on dwelling "Is my gyno going to be male or female?
In the case of an sexual assault, I would like to think, victim would have a choice to be appointed female doctor, specialising in such issues.
In any other circumstances, I don't think is beneficial or reasonable to refuse examination on the bases of gynaecologist being male.

strictlovingmum Even in the case of assault it depends who is available at the crucial moment. If the woman who might have done it is off duty or on holiday and the stand-in is male, well, the world won't stand still and wait.

I agree Andrewofgg.

It is worth getting this phobia (for that's what it is) treated or at least talking it over with a female GP to see what your options are. You can certainly get a female to do your smear. However, childbirth is another matter, because in an emergency, many people may pile in a room and there are no guarantees that they will all be female (indeed it would be rare). You can have elective c-sections though if you have a fear of being examined and minimal examinations by midwives during pregnancy and labour. It can be done, there are quite a few women who have some type of experience of abuse or other reason for being phobic about vaginal exams.

However, I think your demand to change the policies is unreasonable, clearly not enough women are available to want to work as hospital consultants of any speciality or otherwise, it's quite usual to have mainly male gynae teams, it's not discrimination against women, it's women in medicine who don't all want to work those hours in that environment, most train to be GP's as there's more opportunity for family friendly hours and is well-paid.

exotic women aren't allowed in parts of the army though.

strictlovingmum your post was phrased in general, rather than in specifics.

"strictlovingmum Even in the case of assault it depends who is available at the crucial moment. If the woman who might have done it is off duty or on holiday and the stand-in is male, well, the world won't stand still and wait."

So if a woman has been raped and is to be examined by the police doctor, the "world won't stand still and wait" and a man can do it? At the moment I think men do do it? They certainly were until recently. I do not think this is right.

I also do not think it is for one person to judge whether another person "deserves" to be allowed a female practitioner or not.

"strictlovingmum Even in the case of assault it depends who is available at the crucial moment. If the woman who might have done it is off duty or on holiday and the stand-in is male, well, the world won't stand still and wait."

This comment is really awful actually. The casual disregard for the feelings of a woman who has been assaulted.

i think that they try and get female medics to see to people who have been assaulted as they understand that women might not want to be examined by a man after such an incident and that not providing women means that some people are deterred from reporting crimes.

YANBU to think a hospital should have a female gynea but it isn't practical.

I suggest you make an appointment with the nurse at your surgery and talk over your concerns. You need to have a smear test as it is your health and life at stake and she also should be able to help you with your discomfort as it would be a real shame for you not to have children because of something that can be remedied.

SardineQueen I would appreciate if you stop quoting posts that aren't mine, and read more carefully above posts.
What you just quoted I did not write!

strictlovingmum andrew made that comment and it is him I am talking to.

My only point to you was that your post read as being in general, rather than specifics.

Apart from anything else, you agreed with him.

Although I can see that the way I have cut and paste the whole post has your name on it, I was talking to andrew though.

But as you agree with him on that point I guess you could say why you feel that was as well.