Transvaginal scan. Is this normal? Privacy…

[PepperTea]

I wanted to ask if what happened to me at a transvaginal scan sounds normal, privacy wise. I keep thinking about it and how uncomfortable it made me and want to know if I just need to get a grip!

For context, I’ve had two children and loads of intimate procedures and I’ve never felt uncomfortable before.

It started as an abdominal scan for my ovaries, and then the sonographer said a transvaginal scan would be needed, so I emptied my bladder and went back in. There was a female sonographer doing the scan and a male member of staff at the computer (green scrubs).

The first minor thing was when I was asked to remove my clothes from the waist down and sit on the end of the bed. They were both behind a solid, four-panel screen while I was getting ready, but the last panel wasn’t pulled right out. I could see the male staff member’s shoulder sticking out from the side of the panel facing towards me and just kept thinking move in a bit!!

I laid at the end of the bed with my knees bent and used the sheet to cover myself completely from my stomach down to my feet. When the sonographer came round, she said something like “Oh, you’ve really tucked yourself in, haven’t you?” which I thought was a bit odd as I would be exposing myself otherwise!

Then the screen was moved away, and the male staff member sat at the computer facing the wall, at the foot of the bed. The sonographer lifted the sheet up and placed it over my knees, opened my legs for the scan, and didn’t replace the sheet. I was completely exposed, and from his position he could easily have seen me if he’d turned slightly. He didn’t have his back to be, I was just to his side.

I just didn’t understand why there couldn’t have been a screen between us, or why the sonographer couldn’t have kept me covered. I’m not sure if I should of said anything at this point but I didn’t want him to turn his head automatically if I said anything so just thought it would be best to wait for it to be over and not draw attention to myself.

When the scan was finished, I covered myself again with the sheet and waited to get dressed. The male staff member pulled the screen across and stayed behind it (in the middle this time!). The sonographer started tidying up equipment. Then she went behind the screen too, so I assumed it was okay to get dressed, but she came back around the screen a few seconds later to put a stethoscope away while I had started to clean myself up. I quickly covered myself, and then she went back behind the screen and said loudly, “Now you can get changed.”

I left feeling absolutely mortified. I just can’t understand why that situation was handled so differently from anything I’ve experienced before. I’m not bothered about intimate procedures themselves, and I’ve agreed to students observing procedures when I was pregnant, but this just felt so unnecessarily exposing and I guess lacking in awareness?

Are maternity and gynaecology staff just so used to these situations that it’s second nature to them to avoid unnecessary exposure? I’ve never had a bad experience before this.

I was really surprised at how upset I felt. Am I overreacting?

Medical professionals see these kinds of body parts all the time. What has upset you about this in particular?

I have been offered an appt for transvaginal ultrasound but was told it would be with a male sonographer and was offered the choice whether to opt out. But on reflection, I thought, it’s quite literally their job. There are male surgeons and gynaecologists.

Many gynecologist abroad are mainly men

I had a lot of them in my 2nd pregnancy due to cervix issues (shortening) they were done by both male and female staff, I honestly didn’t put a 2nd thought into whether I was exposed or not …. As they are all professionals who do the job as a profession. They’ve seen more intimate body parts than I’ve had hot dinners!

You're overthinking this.....

You get almost daily TV scans when you undergo ivf, it’s normal for some staff members to be inconsiderate. It’s awful how inhuman you are to some medical staff, just because they’ve seen it all before. You’re just a number and they want you in and out as quickly as possible.

The worst experience I had was in X-ray having a hysterosalpinogram. I kept pulling the sheet down, trying to cover myself as a childless 26 year old just starting investigations, and the radiographer actually kept pulling the sheet up and totally exposing me. It’s been decades and I’m still mad at how uncomfortable he made me.

So sorry you’ve also had a bad experience.
I had to have another TV scan a couple of years ago for fibroids, she was lovely and kept me totally covered. Some staff are awful.

I’ve had a few transvaginal scans as I have a cyst. The last 2 or 3 have been done by a man. I honestly can’t remember the details of being covered/uncovered, but I think they always try to be respectful.

I get why you’re upset. Not everyone is bothered by exposing their bodies (especially genitals) to medical professionals, but lots of us are. I have no idea why some of them are so insensitive about it. You’re allowed to feel how you feel about it - it’s totally understandable.

I understand why this bothered you and agree that the staff could have taken better care.

I have also had a bad experience with a trans vaginal scan despite having many other gynae procedures before and since without feeling upset.

I don't think you're overreacting - sorry you had this experience.

I think if you were uncomfortable you probably should have said. It’s just another day in the office to them.
I had a smear and exam last week, GP asked if I wanted some paper to cover myself but literally what’s the point, it ends up being moved so they can see what they are doing anyway.

I think what you describe sounds exactly the same as when I had mine, albeit mine were both female - it was to them just a procedure and for the way it was treated I could have been having my tonsils checked.
Somethings made you feel awkward about this and maybe you need to speak to a professional and get some clearance on it.

Thanks for replying. I completely understand that, and I’ve had male doctors and a particularly fantastic male midwife during previous procedures without any issue.
I guess what upset me was that the setup didn’t maintain privacy, there was no screen between us, and the sheet wasn’t replaced, so I was unnecessarily exposed when I didn’t need to be.
I understand that to them it’s routine and they probably weren’t bothered, which is reassuring in one way but it’s not everyday for me.
I would have thought that the way I’ve been treated for other procedures, with much more privacy, would be to avoid patients feeling unnecessarily uncomfortable like this?

Normal

having had 4 miscarriages and 1 successful pregnancy I’ve had many vaginal scans and I used to hate how exposed I felt but in the end it was no problem and I didn’t even put the sheet on me 🤣 I had a male consultant (and male student) who did all my scans for my successful pregnancy and he was brilliant. I remember the student was stood right at the bottom of the bed (screen was by my head) and I was like yeah he can see all my bits but I didn’t care cos I saw my baby had a heartbeat 💓

I think it's normal to pull the sheet up for, um, access with a TV scan. I think it sounds like the members of staff were probably unaware of how much they were making you uncomfortable.

It doesn't sound like things that I would have been that uncomfortable with, but your feelings are valid too. I think it's fine if you want to write to the head of department and point out the bits that made you uncomfortable and suggest how staff could do it differently in future for the future comfort of other patients. For example, if a member of staff is leaving you alone but coming back in, it really would be helpful best practice if they would let you know that they'll be back in a moment and THEN you can pop your clothes back on in peace.

I've had a few, always with the same male sonographor. He calls in a female staff member to chaperone for the internal part. She generally sits at the computer while he gets on with it.I just view it like any medical procedure. I guess I could ask for a female to do it but I just want it done and results asap.

I think you have to realise that this is something they do all day, every day.

I had issues where I had to have this done on a very regular basis, and I was actively trying to maintain my dignity when I was first having to have them done, but by the eighth or ninth one, I was like walking in, stripping off and laying with my legs akimbo without invitation. It just became normal to me.

I don’t think the screen is usual practice. I do agree that replacing the sheet would have been good patient care. I think I had one at mine. I’m sure we don’t have these during cervical screening though?

Either way, we are lucky to be able to have this kind of healthcare OP. I think you may be being somewhat over sensitive… but perhaps feedback your experience to PALs.

It's wrong for staff to be blasé about your privacy because it is their everyday job. I think it is worth a mention that the computer person does not need to be able to see your private parts, especially when they are male and not in there as a chaperone.

Thanks for all of the replies, especially those that get where I’m coming from. They’ve really made me feel better.
I appreciate the different perspectives too. I completely understand that medical procedures need to be done and I’ve never even requested a female doctor before. I think what’s thrown me is that this was the first time in nearly 20 years of intimate procedures that I’ve ever felt like my privacy was an afterthought.

I’ve been induced twice and have been in plenty of very undignified situations! And have never been in the least bit bothered because it was necessary. Also I’ve always felt that the medical staff were preserving my dignity as much as possible by default and that it was me who was fine with being fully exposed when I was comfortable.

This felt like the opposite. I was trying to preserve my dignity and they were blasé about it. That difference has really stuck with me.

If they had only done a few small things differently, I wouldn’t have felt uncomfortable at all. The main one being using the screen that was already there so that I wasn’t completely exposed to a staff member who wasn’t actually carrying out the scan. Staying fully behind the screen when I was undressing and waiting to finish tidying up until I was dressed or announcing that they were coming back out from behind the screen.
None of that would have affected the scan, but it would have completely changed how I felt.

I agree with you this sounds awkward and like the staff were not thinking too much about your privacy. Just because they see it all day everyday, doesn't mean they shouldn't try to make you feel more comfortable.

Completely agree with this. For an intimate procedure, I wouldn’t expose more of a person’s body than absolutely needed to be exposed. And unless the other member of staff was acting as a chaperone (which it does not seem that he was), he should have been totally screened. I would have asked about getting changed at the end if the staff member didn’t say “you can dress now” as they left.

I wouldn’t be happy with this and I wouldn’t treat someone like this but I would also (as the patient) stop the procedure or ask questions if I wasn’t happy. I know that’s hard to do but better than feeling uncomfortable.

I did think about saying something but I thought he might turn his head or move automatically if I said something and that would have made me feel more embarrassed. So I just waited for it to be over rather than risk making it worse.

I guess I’ve just been lucky up until now that every medical professional involved in an intimate procedure has treated my privacy as mine to give away if I felt comfortable, rather than theirs to be blasé about.

I probably won’t make that assumption in future and be clearer before a procedure starts about what the privacy situation is. I’ve always just trusted the process and let staff lead because I’ve never had a reason to feel uncomfortable before and don’t want to be difficult! I think next time I’ll speak up a bit more at the start.

thanks for everyone’s imput

Hello @PepperTea

I don’t think it sounds like anything untoward happened to you. I hope that is comforting, it isn’t meant to be dismissive. Hope you get good news from the scan.

Thank you. You’re right, definitely nothing untoward.

I think people who are saying this is normal have probably experienced bad practice. Maintaining patient dignity and privacy is drummed into health professionals throughout their training and is central to medical ethics. These two 'professionals' were either badly trained or have become incredibly sloppy in their approach to patient care. From the findings of some of the most recent independent inquiries, (Mid-Staffordshire, Ockenden) it seems many NHS gynaecology and maternity departments struggle to uphold basic professional standards when it comes to the care of women for some reason...

I would definitely highlight your experience to PALs. Women shouldn't have to be grateful for receiving sub-par medical care. Not explaining clearly why a patient needs a different procedure, not confirming consent, unnecessarily exposing a patient, having unnecessary staff members in the room (who are not acting as a chaperone) or not explaining their role and not clearly allocating time for the patient to dress and undress with privacy are all evidence of poor practice.

Edited for typos