Quebec’s physicians college has forbidden its members from performing virginity tests after learning of four cases in which doctors were asked to conduct the gynecological exams.
The
province’s College des Medicins said it recently provided guidelines outlining
its stance on virginity testing, which examines whether a woman has engaged in
sexual intercourse.
The
procedure goes against its code of ethics, the college said, as physicians are
not to intervene in their patients’ private lives.
The cases
came to light when two University of Montreal ethicists researched virginity
testing. The college said a physician also raised concerns about the
gynecological exams.
Dr.
Charles Bernard, CEO of College Des Medecins, said physicians still have a responsibility
to evaluate if there is “any problem” that prompted the request, and whether
there is a possibility the patient is in danger of being harmed.
“If you
find there is something going wrong, you can recommend a patient to maybe visit
a social worker, a psychologist,”said Bernard.
Bernard
said if the physician is very concerned about possible violence, they can even
go as far as referring the matter to Quebec’s child welfare system.
And, if a
physician does issue a “virginity certificate,” he or she could face
disciplinary charges.
Council
for the Status of Women told CTV Montreal it’s important to note that while
there were four reported cases, this is not a trend, and the demands are coming
from religious fundamentalist groups.
Shaheen
Ashraf, from the Canadian Council of Muslim Women, said virginity tests are
“archaic.”
“We
should be able to control our own bodies,” she said. “No one else should have
the right to even think along those lines.”
Archaic is the right word here, methinks!
See ya, eh!
Bob
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