A medical student studying a female patient’s condition in the hospital
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Fatwa number ( 19701 )
Q: I am a student in the Faculty of Medicine, and the curriculum consists of two parts: theoretical and practical. In the practical stage, the student
visits patients in some hospitals, and then performs two things: First: collecting information about the patient’s condition, complaint, and symptoms of the illness from the patient himself verbally, which is medically called: (medical history). Second: examining the patient by the student, knowing that this examination is for training purposes, and its aim is not to treat the patient, since the patient has another specialized doctor responsible for his treatment. The matters we found difficult are: First: Is it permissible for the student to study the case of a female patient in the gynecology department in the manner described above, while there are similar cases in the men’s department? Second: If the illness affects both men and women, but there are currently no sick cases except in the gynecology department, is examining the woman permissible in this case? Considering the possibility that a similar case may or may not be available in the men’s department in the future? Third: There are illnesses that only women contract; is it permissible for the student in this case to examine the female patient himself, or should he be content with only taking her medical history verbally, or is neither of the two permissible? And since this matter is widespread in medical faculties,
and is a difficulty for many students, we ask Your Eminence to clarify what has been difficult for us.
A: It is obligatory that men treat men, and women treat women, and it is not permissible for one gender to treat the other except in cases of dire necessity, in order to avoid the causes of fitnah (trial, discord or temptation), and likewise male medical students train in the men’s department and female students train in the women’s department. And Allah is the Guide to the straight path. And success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.
Q: I am a student in the Faculty of Medicine, and the curriculum consists of two parts: theoretical and practical. In the practical stage, the student
visits patients in some hospitals, and then performs two things: First: collecting information about the patient’s condition, complaint, and symptoms of the illness from the patient himself verbally, which is medically called: (medical history). Second: examining the patient by the student, knowing that this examination is for training purposes, and its aim is not to treat the patient, since the patient has another specialized doctor responsible for his treatment. The matters we found difficult are: First: Is it permissible for the student to study the case of a female patient in the gynecology department in the manner described above, while there are similar cases in the men’s department? Second: If the illness affects both men and women, but there are currently no sick cases except in the gynecology department, is examining the woman permissible in this case? Considering the possibility that a similar case may or may not be available in the men’s department in the future? Third: There are illnesses that only women contract; is it permissible for the student in this case to examine the female patient himself, or should he be content with only taking her medical history verbally, or is neither of the two permissible? And since this matter is widespread in medical faculties,
and is a difficulty for many students, we ask Your Eminence to clarify what has been difficult for us.
A: It is obligatory that men treat men, and women treat women, and it is not permissible for one gender to treat the other except in cases of dire necessity, in order to avoid the causes of fitnah (trial, discord or temptation), and likewise male medical students train in the men’s department and female students train in the women’s department. And Allah is the Guide to the straight path. And success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.