Welcome to Medical Patient Modesty

Our Mission

To educate patients and their families about how to maintain maximum bodily privacy during medical procedures, how to advocate for their right to request a same-sex medical team for intimate procedures, and how to help prevent sexual abuse by medical professionals. We also educate medical professionals about the importance of respecting and being sensitive to patients' wishes regarding modesty.

Some patients may feel pressure to trust the medical system without question. While medical professionals play an essential role in patient care, patients should still have a voice in decisions concerning their own bodies. Many patients value bodily privacy and do not want intimate parts of their bodies exposed to or examined by medical personnel of the opposite sex — EVEN IN A MEDICAL SETTING. Yet their concerns may be dismissed, minimized, or ridiculed.

Medical professionals should be more sensitive to patients' concerns about bodily privacy, make every effort to respect their wishes, and ensure that unnecessary exposure and unnecessary intimate procedures do not occur.

Keep this Statement in Mind

Because something is done in the name of health does not make it automatically acceptable.

Medical Patient Modesty (MPM) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting greater respect for patient modesty in medical settings. We educate patients and their families about their options and rights regarding modesty and bodily privacy and provide information to help patients advocate for themselves. We also seek to raise awareness of situations in which patients' privacy or dignity may have been compromised.

As a growing nonprofit organization, we rely on financial support and volunteers to educate others and advocate for patients whose concerns about modesty and privacy have not been appropriately addressed. If you would like to donate or volunteer with MPM, please contact us by .

We welcome your feedback. Take a moment to share your thoughts about issues you believe we should address on Medical Patient Modesty's blog. You can also explore this website for information on these and many other topics related to patient modesty:

*Does a patient's underwear have to be removed during surgery?
Patients are too often expected to surrender their bodily privacy simply because they are undergoing a medical procedure. In many cases, patients are never clearly told beforehand that their underwear will be removed, leaving them to discover afterward that their bodies were exposed far more than they anticipated.

There have also been cases in which patients woke up to discover that urinary catheters had been inserted without their prior knowledge or consent. Check out our article, unnecessary urinary catheters. One man was required to remove his underwear for knee surgery even though there was no apparent medical reason for doing so. These are not trivial concerns. Patients have a right to ask why clothing must be removed, why intimate procedures are being performed, who will be present, and whether each procedure is actually necessary.

Read about cases where patients' modesty was violated. We also address the disturbing practice of medical students performing pelvic examinations on unconscious women before gynecological surgery—sometimes without the patient's knowledge or specific consent. Learn more about non-consensual intimate examinations.

*Are all intimate procedures necessary?
Patients may have questions about whether an intimate examination or procedure is medically necessary in their particular circumstances. For example, we discuss questions surrounding cervical cancer screening for women who have never been sexually active. We also address situations in which patients may wonder whether removing clothing is necessary for a particular examination, such as removing a shirt for a physician to listen to the heart.

*Are you considering surgery?
Review information that may help you prepare for surgery and discuss your concerns about privacy, modesty, and consent with your healthcare providers.

*Are you concerned about sexual misconduct by doctors?
We recommend this resource for additional information about sexual misconduct by physicians.

*Are you interested in learning about modesty from a biblical perspective?
Explore additional resources concerning modesty from a biblical perspective.

*Women's 12-page booklets
We distribute stapled 12-page booklets to women containing information about protecting their privacy and modesty in medical settings. We are seeking volunteers to help distribute these booklets.

*Men and modesty brochures
We distribute brochures to men addressing patient privacy, modesty, and their rights in medical settings. We are seeking volunteers to help distribute these materials.

* Check out Why You Should Support Medical Patient Modesty?

*Please support MPM by participating in our online silent auction to benefit Medical Patient Modesty.