Gynecology: the Ethics Committee calls on professionals to pay greater attention to soft skills

Intimate examinations "require listening and consideration of what patients feel and express, taking into account modesty and the need for intimacy, and attention to the pain or discomfort that the examination may cause, whether expressed or not", details opinion 142 of the CCNE.

This document is the work of a working group that heard more than 30 people including all the parties concerned: patient and user representatives, health professionals, as well as deans and interns in order to collect their feelings and grievances on a complex and sometimes sensitive subject.

Following these interviews, the CCNE does not consider it appropriate to establish a written compendium, nor to request the systematic presence of a third party during the examination. On the other hand, it emphasizes the importance for professionals to ensure the repeated and maintained consent of patients.

"Consent should no longer be tacit or presumed, but explicit and differentiated for each examination carried out during a consultation," the opinion said.

Additional precautions must also be taken "when pupils or students perform or attend examinations" or in the presence of a patient "in a particular situation of vulnerability". The committee also calls for better training of medical students "in the humanities and ethics of care".

The Committee is particularly concerned about a deterioration in trust between caregivers and patients, which could lead to a disaffection of certain medical specialties "under the effect of collective opprobrium and targeted attacks on social networks. He also fears an evolution of medical practices unsuited to the real needs of patients and ultimately a loss of opportunity for patients in case of renunciation of consultation or refusal of examinations.

The recommendations come after reports of gynaecological and obstetric violence have increased in recent months in Europe, with some rights groups saying women are routinely denied informed consent, subjected to rude and degrading behaviour by medical staff and, in some cases, unsafe practices.

© 2023 AFP