It is the policy of this practice to respect the privacy, dignity, cultural and religious beliefs of all of our patients.
If you would like a chaperone to be present during a physical or intimate examination by a doctor or other healthcare professional who may be consulting at the surgery or if you would prefer to be examined by a same sex doctor or healthcare professional then please let us know and we will do our best to comply with your wishes. Please mention this to one of our receptionists ot the healthcare professional you are seeing for your consultation.
Similarly there may be occasions when the doctor or healthcare professional you are seeing feels it appropriate for a chaperone to be present . If this is the case then they will tell you and explain the reasons why.
Intimate examinations may include genital, rectal or breast examinations.
All practice staff who act as chaperones have received appropriate training. This includes regular updates.
In the event that a chaperone is not available at the time of the appointment, we may postpone the examination or propose that the patient is examined by another doctor ( for example a doctor of the same sex) if at all possible. If the doctor feels that to delay the examination would not be in your best interests this will be explained at the time but the final decision will be yours.