Ok, I’m going to say it. So she was refused an examination because wearing a hijab implied virginity. So here’s the question - what ethnic or religious background were these medics that caused them to make this assumption or assume she would not want her hymen at risk from an examination? I’m not a betting type but I’d lay money on this one.
From the Femedic article:
I wanted a transvaginal ultrasound, which is the standard diagnostic test done for pelvic pain and provides a more detailed image of the inside of the pelvis. But this was repeatedly refused, because I was a “virgin” — because, by heteronormative standards, I had not had sex. Performing the scan would break my hymen and supposedly “take” my virginity.
And
When seeking pain relief from a locum GP, for instance, she warned against a transvaginal exam after I confirmed that I was unmarried. The GP’s exact words were: “What if your husband has a problem with that when you get married?”. She was referring to the antiquated myth that bleeding on the sheets (due to the hymen breaking) on the night of one’s wedding is “proof” of virginity prior to the marriage. It was hard to believe she was saying this, unironically and as a healthcare professional, in the twenty-first century.
When I told the GP, nervously but resolutely, that I didn’t plan on getting married, I was laughed at derisively. Clearly, she did not believe me. I was far from comfortable disclosing my sexual identity to her.
It seems the problem is as much with female medics as male ones.
From the Vice article:
she had a doctor at Diagnostic World, which provides diagnostic services to the NHS, refuse to perform the ultrasound “due to religious beliefs as I am a virgin and her beliefs don’t allow her to even risk breaking my hymen.”
A fucking doctor’s religious beliefs do not allow her to break a patient’s hymen, FFS.
These people should be struck off.
