GP to be investigated by the GMC

My question was what would the reaction be if it was a Muslim doctor and a Christian woman.

It depends on how it was done. Were chaperones offered? Was the request medically justified? Were efforts made to minimise resulting discomfort and loss of dignity?

Mainly the third and fourth ones ^

Either you appreciate that as a doctor you are in a position of authority, and patients dignity should be respected as much as possible. Or you dont.

And if he doesnt in this scenario, he wont be respectful in other scenarios where women are vulnerable.

So if it had been a Muslim doctor and a Christian woman you would still be as enthusiastic to see him punished - and making the assumption that he is racist and misogynist

WadesNan-----no answer came the firm reply !!
Such a question falls on deaf ears.

Wait until someone somewhere along the line is " wronged " by a foreign doctor. We'll either not hear the end of it or there'll be a pregnant silence. Nobody will kick-off that's for sure.

So your scenario is a Christian woman is asked to remove clothing so a doctor who is Muslim can examine her? Am I understanding you correctly?

This sort of nonsense has created people like Tommy Robinson and we can well do without encouraging people like him every time a white person happens to upset a person of foreign extraction.
We never used to have this sort of behaviour when Alf Garnet graced our screens.

I agree with Maryeliza, in the current climate, either side could be mischief making, and without the full facts, it’s difficult to judge. I worked among Muslim families for twenty years when I was teaching, and whilst they were quite conservative (small c) I never once had to speak to a woman with her face covered, even though there were men around. This woman could have taken her husband into the consultation apparently, I wonder why she didn’t. Who knows what the actual facts of the situation were, we certainly don’t.

Lenny Henry as a comedian used to laugh and joke about himself ! Nobody saw the harm in that, in fact people liked him more because of his sense of humour and his ability to laugh at himself.
He's a great character.

So if it had been a Muslim doctor and a Christian woman you would still be as enthusiastic to see him punished - and making the assumption that he is racist and misogynist

If there was no logical clinical need for him to ask her to disrobe, hell yes! That would raise concerns about his fitness to practice...
If he compaired asking her to expose a part of her body that she felt more comfortable for no defendable reason and compaired it to removing a bike helmet, yes that would be concerning.

There is a generation of doctors who as students practiced intimate exams on anaethetised women whose consent was not asked, and who had no clinical need for a vaginal exam. Some have moved on in their views of women with humility, and now practice respectfully despite training at a time when views were very different, others havent. And those who havent should have their views challenged.

Janeainsworth that makes zero sense. What "flak" would there have been if they had been satisfied with their internal investigation?. it wouldnt have been made public! There would be no flak! GMC referrals = media attention

Think about it notanan.
The hospital uses its normal complaints procedure.
Either a) It decides the doctor wasn’t out of order, but apologises to the complainant for hurt feelings etc. Complainant will not be satisfied with this and will either refer the matter to the GMC themselves, or go to the press, or both. If they don’t go to the press, someone else will on their behalf. The hospital gets heavily criticised in the press for sticking up for the doctor and not listening to the patient.

Or b). The hospital decides as a result of the complaint that the doctor is out of order/guilty of misconduct and because this is obviously going to be construed as racially motivated, a referral to the GMC is mandatory.
The GMC gets involved anyway, so the hospital just save themselves the aggro.
Of course it would have been made public. Do you really think that either party would have been amenable to an apology?

What about the assumptions that this doctor is a racist and a misogynist - I have no idea whether this doctor is what he is being accused of by some posters but it seems some people are making wild assumptions. How about waiting until the investigation by the GMC is finished

Come on. Do you really agree that a to a veiled woman, being asked to remove the veil is no different to taking off a bike helmet??

Nobody really believes that surely? And if they do they have had an empathy bypass

Because of course loads of women who are concerned about a child with tonsilitis go to a drop in surgery wearing a bikers helmet.

It would seem the child's father was more concerned about his wife's veil than his child's illness. As has been said though we don't know the details.

Why would the two things be mutually exclusive sodapop ?

Spot on not

Oh, you know this man? Amazing and you know his priorities. A small world indeed.

I agree w/ those who say that the doctor could have simply asked the woman to speak louder or move her veil away from her mouth. Or he could have let her know the problem and let her decide how to resolve it. At worst, the doctor thinks the Muslim veil is "silly" or "unnecessary" (my words); at best, he simply didn't think of these other solutions.

Recently, I read something online about a concept called "cultural sensitivity." It refers to the ability to be sensitive to the needs and beliefs of cultures other than one's own. While it's possible that the doctor is a bigot, I think it's more likely that he is just "culturally insensitive." He probably didn't realize how much the veil means to the Muslim community or that he should even look for any other solutions than the first one that popped into his head.

The article I read said that cultural sensitivity should become part of all forms of training for people who work w/ the public, including healthcare professionals. I agree. But those who already are practicing their profession need to learn on their own, I suppose.

I think it's interesting that the woman complied w/ the doctor's request, but her DH complained. That suggests to me that, in this case, the veil does not really reflect her wishes, but rather, her DH's. However, that's a whole other discussion, I guess, and has nothing to do w/ the GP's behavior.

I think it's interesting that the woman complied w/ the doctor's request, but her DH complained

Why? Have you never felt bamboozled at a medical appointment?

Surely if you want your sick child seen you do what youre told and brush off your discomfort.. then after maybe think "hang on, that was wrong/doesnt make sense"..

Good point, notanan!

So what happens when an internal examination maybe required ?

I expect that a female doctor is requested Bridgeit. All women are entitled to ask for a female doctor or/and a chaperone for intimate exams. Mind you, when I was delivering my three children I felt much more comfortable with female staff, but it didn’t occur to me to ask for a female doctor to be stitched. I don’t think the right to a female doctor was automatic 40 years ago. Thankfully times have changed, although I would always have put my child’s safety above my discomfiture, and seemingly so did this lady, but I don’t understand why the father didn’t go into the consultation along with his wife.