Receptionist/chaperone jobs

There are job listings around for medical receptionist positions with duties to include chaperone when required by the physician. Of course the primary reason is legal protection for male doctors, or to make assault less likely on female doctors by male patients. Weather that is required or not is per policy of different offices. BUt also listed duty for chaperone sometimes is, "Providing emotional support for patients during uncomfortable or embarrassing procedures".

I'm sure they jobs are only open to women even if it doesn't say that - it's what it means quite certain. Has anyone here ever had such a job? WHat was it like?

Nope never have seen such listing. But i'd love to chaperone every male under the age of 35!!!

I have to do this as part of my job for the reasons put in the original post

I posted this under another topic related to chaperones .. I can further ad that I don't believe the receptionist had any medical training and was just a temp to boot

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I had a physical recently where there was just two people in the practice , doctor & receptionist (both female)

So when it came time for the genital exam the doctor asked if it would be ok if she brought in a chaperone and said its not her usual one because she was sick. I said OK and the receptionist came in who had to be no older than 25 and very pretty , she was talking with doctor while she gave me a rectal / prostate exam (laying on side) then I got up for genital exam and faced doctor & chaperone. There was mirror on the side wall and I could see the chaperone, she was staring into the ceiling the whole time. I don't think she had much experience in this since she was only a temp. the only down side to this was the whole thing made me so nervous that I wasnt at my "best" if you know what I mean. The doctor's regular receptionist is even prettier than the temp, so something to look forward to next year

Speaking from a strictly practical point of view, I can't recall the last time I saw a male receptionist at a doctor's office, if ever. Don't get me wrong, the best nurse I've ever met was a male ER nurse who was proficient, gentle, amusing, and comforting. It should go without saying that US employment law forbids discriminatory hiring practices based on gender, but if I was the human resources manager for a gynecological practice, I would most likely hire females for any position that required the duties of chaperone. That's not to say that a male coudn't do an admirable job but the comfort level of the patient population has to be considered.

Last year when I had a cystoscopy, there were three people in the room besides me; the doctor, the nurse assisting him, and a male PA. I'm not sure what the function of the PA was but the entire procedure was professional. If he was there as a chaperone, I didn't request one and didn't feel the need, but others might feel differently in the same position.

While I know sexism is rampant in medicine, it shouldn't be. Things should be gender neutral with the exception of gender specific tests and procedures.

That said, as a male, I have NEVER been offered a chaperone. The closest I've come is at the podiatrist's office. There's a sign in the room stating that chaperones are available. Really? A chaperone for when you take your shoes off?

It would be done by a female nurse over here, if requested by a female patient. I'm not suggesting that a receptionist would not be asked to do this, but it would be very rare in practices in this country. Admin staff in surgeries are pretty much that, they do a great job and provide a good service, but it doesnt involve them doing such tasks.

"Speaking from a strictly practical point of view, I can't recall the last time I saw a male receptionist at a doctor's office, if ever."

I think for all practical purpose only women are hired into that job. I've never seen one either at that job or in dentist office, but maybe there are a few in dentists.

"It would be done by a female nurse over here"

I guess that's common here too but nurses time is more expensive than a clerical staff, and in some smaller clinics the clerical staff also performs chaperon duties.

It's much more common for male docs to use chaperons for legal cover, but some female docs use them as well as a safeguard to reduce the chance of assault by a male patient, which does happen sometimes. I saw some survey once that said this was about 10-15% of female doctors, so not common, but not unknownj either.

"I can further ad that I don't believe the receptionist had any medical training"

Interesting, thanks for anecdote.

During my youth and adolescence, part of a receptionist's duty was to provide her lap for me to bend over when getting injections.

If it wasnt a male i felt comfortable with I would refuse!!!

Tom,

I certainly believe such jobs exist, but maybe it's only really common for male doctors examining female patients. The other way, seems like it does happen but it's not as common. I've seen something claiming around 10% to 15% of female doctors use chaperones with male patients. It's not really an "equal" situation for a lot of reasons.

I've read things online from ppl who claim to have had such a job but you never know if it's real, or probably more likely, just made up out of someone's imagination.