Do Doctors Give Females Less Thorough Physical Exams?

Ladies,

When you are required to have a physical exam for a job or college, does the doctor skip over the breast and genital exams? It seems doctors are okay with making males strip and examining their genitals, but seem to shy away from doing the same with female patients. I've heard women say that the doctor skipped over parts of the exam even though they were clearly listed on the exam form. Some women were required to undress to their bra and panties but never had to remove them. Others didn't even have to remove a stitch of clothing. I'd love to hear about your real life experiences regarding this topic. Do women get off easier then men when it comes to mandatory physical exams?

I def find that females get skipped over during exams.

In my experience, it's the other way round: even though gyn exams are mandatory for women to enter College, men are just required to undergo a basic exam, which doesn't include an examination of their genitals.

Est - I beg to differ with you. I think it all depends on the educational institution. A friend of mine that is in his late 3os recently decided to go back to school. During the enrollment and registration process, he was referred to the student health center for evaluation. They practically turned the man inside out, including STD swabs, prostate exam, PSA testing, and a flex sigmoidoscopy. I don't think they were as concerned about his previous transcript as they were about the status of his lower torso and inner workings.

^^^^ Doesn't all that seem excessive for a student?

I thought so too, but I don't think this is a figment of his whatsit. He is attending a historically african-american university in a rural part of the state. I strongly suspect that many of the students (if not a majority) have received spotty or substandard medical care throughout their lives. For many of them, this may be the first opportunity they've had for a comprehensive medical exam.

On the other hand, he could have pulled the wool over this skeptic's eyes!

Well, it has been the exact opposite for me: I was never given genital exams or anything of that sort (not even hernia checks) for my mandatory college exams, while I know women must have a complete gyn exam (including pap smear) to study

There is nothing like this in western europe.

Again, things are different in different parts of the world. I have studied at three different US universities and in none of them was a gynecological examination required for admission. Clean PPD test? Yes. Updated vaccinations? You betcha. I can recall having to have a limited physical exam performed prior to my freshman year, but a pelvic exam was not part of that event.