title: Chaperones and intimate physical examinations: what do male and female patients want?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Many studies of patients' perception of a medical chaperone have focused on female patients; that of male patients are less well studied. Moreover, previous studies were largely based on patient populations in English-speaking countries. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the perception and attitude of male and female Chinese patients to the presence of a chaperone during an intimate physical examination.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional guided questionnaire survey was conducted on a convenient sample of 150 patients at a public teaching hospital in Hong Kong.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Over 90% of the participants considered the presence of a chaperone appropriate during intimate physical examination, and 84% felt that doctors, irrespective of gender, should always request the presence of a chaperone. The most commonly cited reasons included the availability of an objective account should any legal issue arise, protection against sexual harassment, and to provide psychological support. This contrasted with the experience of those who had previously undergone an intimate physical examination of whom only 72.6% of women and 35.7% of men had reportedly been chaperoned. Among female participants, 75.0% preferred to be chaperoned during an intimate physical examination by a male doctor, and 28.6% would still prefer to be chaperoned when being examined by a female doctor. Among male participants, over 50% indicated no specific preference but a substantial minority reported a preference for chaperoned examination (21.2% for male doctor and 25.8% for female doctor).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients in Hong Kong have a high degree of acceptance and expectations about the role of a medical chaperone. Both female and male patients prefer such practice regardless of physician gender. Doctors are strongly encouraged to discuss the issue openly with their patients before they conduct any intimate physical examination.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: V C
authors.initials: VC
authors.lastname: Fan
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: H T
authors.initials: HT
authors.lastname: Choy
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: G Yj
authors.initials: GY
authors.lastname: Kwok
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: H G
authors.initials: HG
authors.lastname: Lam
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: Q Y
authors.initials: QY
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: Y Y
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: Man
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: C K
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: C C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: Y F
authors.initials: YF
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: G Kk
authors.initials: GK
authors.lastname: Leung
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001294:Attitude to Health; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006723:Hong Kong; D006784:Hospitals, Teaching; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D061348:Medical Chaperones / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008875:Middle Aged; D057240:Patient Preference / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010808:Physical Examination; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Female; Male; Physical examination/psychology; Physician-patient relations