British doctors forced to ask men if they are pregnant – Diario La Página – 2024-08-12 23:12:04

The UK’s National Health Service (NHS) has introduced new rules for radiographers to check that their patients are pregnant, which also applies to men, The Telegraph reports.

Currently, before performing X-rays, CT scans, MRIs and other tests, radiologists must ensure that the patient is not pregnant so as not to endanger the baby. This rule applies to patients aged 12 to 55. This change in regulations was made after a transgender man underwent a CT scan and found that he was pregnant, as he was a biological woman.

The patient will be asked to fill out a questionnaire in which they will have to write down their pronouns, their birth sex and answer questions about the possibility of pregnancy. The questionnaire has been developed by the Society of Radiographers in collaboration with several NHS hospitals and transgender rights groups.

Negative reaction from patients
The move, which was intended to encourage inclusion in British society, was received negatively by some patients and doctors. For example, some men walked away angry after being asked about a possible pregnancy. Campaigners say filling out the form is “humiliating” not only for men but also for women, who have to answer detailed questions about whether they can have children, whether they have had abortions and pregnancies outside the womb, etc. Such questions can hurt women by reminding them of their traumas, one source said.

Campaigners are calling on the NHS to return to “common sense”. In this context, Fiona McAnena, campaigns director at the human rights charity Sex Matters, said: “The Society of Radiographers’ inclusivity policy is one of the worst examples of professional organisations losing their minds by putting ideology before biological facts”. McAnena called the procedure “inappropriate” and added that it was a “shocking waste of time”. “NHS trusts that have adopted this policy in their radiography units should immediately reverse it and return to common sense and reality,” she stressed.