GP and "Lady Bits".

[LadyJJ]

I had a phone consultation with a GP earlier regarding my HRT (patches and topical oestrogen).
Throughout the consultation she referred to my vagina/vulva as my "Lady Bits ".
It felt very odd, I used the anatomical words.
AIBU to expect a doctor not to use weird euphemisms?

That would put me off a doctor. Surely a medical professional should be able to say vulva / penis / anus or whatever

Just odd

Yea that's pretty weird

Was she a pretend doctor?

A lot of people feel more comfortable with euphemism, probably the majority. Doctors always say ‘downstairs’ or ‘back passage’ or similar ime

That's just odd. I wonder if she encounters patients who don't actually know the correct anatomical terms and has resorted to euphemisms to make herself understood, I can't think of any other excuse for such weirdness.

Was she a chiropractor pretending to be a real doctor?

I don't particularly think it's odd, as a professional she must see multiple vaginal problems a week and is probably guided more by what her patients call it!?

It's really hard to get this right. You'd be surprised just how many people think words like penis, vagina, anus, vulva etc are rude even when doctors use them. Some even complain when they hear them.

Doctors are obviously completely comfortable with these words...even the most prudish, it's not like you can avoid them in years of training... so I guess that she's found a euphemism that seems to work for most people in the population she works with. It's not going to be possible to find the exact words that every individual patient is happiest with.

That's not good. I train student doctors in communication skills. That sort of language would be challenged by me and any of my colleagues!

I'm a midwife and you'd be surprised by the amount of people who don't know the difference between the vulva and the vagina but I neither judge them nor assume either way. Also a lot of people tend to prefer using their own terms and have been offended by me using the correct terminology. It's hard over the phone to gauge what people are and are not comfortable with so by saying 'lady bits' she probably thought she was playing it safe. I'm like you and would have found it odd but I also get where she is coming from at the same time.

The consultant I saw in my most recent pregnancy insisted on talking about 'the baby in your tummy' and referred to my uterine arteries as 'the little tubes that feed the baby'. This, in spite of the fact that I had already used the appropriate terms when asking questions. I think there must have been some sort of directive regarding the use of 'accessible language' and some doctors are following it more slavishly than others. I don't mean to knock the basic idea clearly this is entirely appropriate and necessary for some patients but I did find it a bit weird and annoying.

You would be surprised how many adult patients use euphemisms such as "back passage", "pass water", "willy" and so on! Ideally the doctor would take their cue from the patient, but some HCPs use euphemisms so as not to embarrass their patients, be more approachable etc. Also, some patients use medical terms wrongly (for example, they will use the word "stomach" but the area they're referring to is actually their lower abdomen, well away from their stomach), so sometimes using less formal terminology can relax the patient and allow gentle probing to find out what they really mean.

I cannot stand the tweeness of these things. Just call it by the right name. I feel the same 're poop. Hate it

@FelicityBeedle

A lot of people feel more comfortable with euphemism, probably the majority. Doctors always say ‘downstairs’ or ‘back passage’ or similar ime

They really don't!

I would be really weirded out by a doctor who said 'downstairs'.

Oh give it a rest!!! You’re weirded out by this?

At a recent appointment the doctor actually asked me if I knew much about the female anatomy and asked if I knew what she meant by vulva. I asume a lot of people don't know the correct words and might be embarrassed to say so.

Sounds very unprofessional to be giving 1950s connotations and frilly vocabulary when you are a medical expert

So the doctor can either go for the most euphemistic term possible and not freak out patients who are ashamed of their bodies. Or the doctor can use the correct terms and set the example of not being so ashamed you can’t even be in the same room as the word vulva. It is tricky.

I don't know what the GPS day but my colleague says passing water. Ffs it's urine. When she asks a patient if the have difficulty passing water I want to say "don't go near the river then".

I hear down below quite a bit from patients.

@Franklyfrost

So the doctor can either go for the most euphemistic term possible and not freak out patients who are ashamed of their bodies. Or the doctor can use the correct terms and set the example of not being so ashamed you can’t even be in the same room as the word vulva. It is tricky.

It is tricky, but I think there's a middle ground, right? 'Lady Bits' isn't (I think?) a common euphemism and could refer to various bodily parts, so it's not that helpful. Likewise terms that confuse anus/vagina.

It sounds daft, but it really does matter - I know from caring for a very ill elderly relative that you can end up with genuinely serious misunderstandings if you use terminology people can't follow.

It's the same on here when posters say vagina when they actually mean vulva, not everyone ois comfortable with medical terms. Personally I prefer them.

Are you sure you didn't ring David Walliams by mistake?

YANBU . I had a gynaecologist who called it a 'foofoo' and also referred in the same appointment to 'solo fun' and 'panties' - in an appt where we were discussing sexual abuse FFS . She was an absolute twat; my GP howled when I told her and said she was the exact same in medical training (eg IUD training)/conferences, apparently she was well known for it .

I actually quite like using euphemisms such as "lady bits" when casually discussing women's health issues with my DH.

But with a medical professional, I'd expect to use and hear more serious words, like (at the very least) "genitals" (internal or external), or (when more specific) "vulva" and "vagina".

It can be hard at first for a GP to be sure which terms a particular patient is more comfortable/familiar with, but once conversation has started, I'd expect them to at least match the kind of language the patient chooses to use. This is basic, public-facing communication skills.

What does it actually matter?? I can't believe the things people find odd. Who cares what terms are used as long as you know what they are talking about.