PETALING JAYA: It is not necessary for doctors who are conducting physical examinations to seek consent from their patients before touching them, according to Deputy Health Minister Dr Lee Boon Chye.
He said this as there was already an implied consent from patients to be physically examined, unless it involved a more intrusive check involving a sensitive body part.
“As it is a physical examination, it is assumed that you are agreeable to being touched, except examinations that are deemed to be invasive, such as a vaginal or rectal examination. Then you have to seek the patient’s consent,” he told theSun yesterday.
Lee was asked if doctors are required to seek permission from their patients before touching them following the recent sexual harassment case at a clinic in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur, where a journalist was alleged to have been touched inappropriately by her dermatologist.
Kuala Lumpur Criminal Investigations Department chief SAC Rusdi Md Isa, when contacted, said investigations were ongoing and that police have recorded a statement from the doctor.
Lee said to determine whether a touch was deemed inappropriate, the checkup must be done in the presence of a chaperone.
“The chaperone is usually a nurse, so they would normally know what is appropriate and what is not. Their presence is vital in case there are any allegations like this one, as they provide protection for both parties,” he said.
In the Bangsar harassment case, the victim alleged that the doctor had grabbed one of her legs, pulled it onto his lap and stroked it without her consent, all in the absence of a chaperone.
Meanwhile, dermatologist, Dr Nurashikin Ahmad, said doctors should be mindful where and how they touch their patients to avoid allegations of sexual harassment.
She said while it was subjective whether a touch is deemed inappropriate, health practitioners should avoid being in contact with body parts other than the ones being treated or examined.
“Also, if a patient is uncomfortable, it is best he or she inform the doctor then, and not wait to file a report later.”
Nurashikin said it was also not uncommon for patients to lodge reports on sexual harassments in clinics, but noted that there were a number of cases where the allegations were unfounded and the patients had lodged the complaint to take advantage of a situation.
