A Survey of the Perception of Female Surgical Residents of Their Training in the Examination of Male Genitalia in Makkah Hospitals, KSA

The basic aims of medical schools are to graduate doctors to be competent in eliciting physical signs across all body systems. Deficiency in the clinical examination skills of female surgical residents of the male groin hernia and genitalia has not been explored and not enough investigated in the Arab and Muslim communities, despite obvious cultural restrictions and religious traditions. The cultural background of the students also has had an impact on their future training and skills. Certain systems’ examination for patients is considered very sensitive to perform by students and doctors of both sexes due to their sensitive nature. This might be due to cultural issues which affect the skills on these areas. Aim of this survey was to explore the different reasons and the influence of gender on clinical examination skills of female surgical trainees to male patient intimate. Methods: A cross-sectional design based on a self-administered questionnaire which was distributed to 80 female surgical resident trainees across five Hospitals in Makkah, Holy city, Saudi Arabia. The study was carried out between the period of September 2020 to July 2021 and involved all the female surgical residents from level 1 - 5 (R1 to R5). Result: Our study showed that overall perception of most of female residents on their performance on clinical examinations is less than expected. This study revealed that the main factor affecting the female resident’s clinical examination of the opposite sex intimate is the gender difference. 56 (81.2%) participants stated that their gender impacted their confidence and skills in examination of intimate of opposite sex, while 13 (18.8%) stated that gender has no effect. Conclusion: In conservative community, there are numerous areas where gender influences medical student clinical learning, including clinical exposure, supervisor support and patient willingness and consents, as well as some of the undergraduate methods of learning clinical skills not aligned with the post graduates needs.