Protecting Women’s Privacy in J&K Healthcare.Why Every Examination Room Must Respect a Patient’s Privacy.
The Case for Female Staff During Ecgs and Other Intimate Medical
Procedures in Jammu & Kashmir Hospitals and Clinics.
Dr. Fiaz Maqbool Fazili
A hospital or Doctor’s consultation room is meant to be a sanctuary—a place where science meets compassion and where the sick seek healing with trust and hope. Yet, for countless women across Jammu and Kashmir, a routine medical examination often becomes an ordeal that tests not only their health but also their dignity.
Imagine a woman arriving at the emergency department with severe chest pain. Every passing minute matters. The doctor immediately advises an electrocardiogram (ECG), a simple investigation that could detect a life-threatening heart attack. She is escorted into the ECG room and asked to expose her chest. There is no privacy curtain. Male staff are moving in and out. No female technician or attendant is available. She hesitates, clutches her dupatta a little tighter, lowers her eyes, and silently wonders whether she should proceed or walk away. That hesitation may last only a few minutes, but in cardiac emergencies, even a few minutes can make the difference between timely treatment and irreversible damage. Tragically, many women postpone investigations, request unnecessary delays, or seek expensive private facilities simply because they fear embarrassment more than illness. This is not an isolated incident. It is a silent reality in many hospitals across our Union Territory.The issue extends far beyond the ECG room. It encompasses every clinical setting where women are required to expose parts of their bodies—echocardiography, ultrasound, X-rays involving the chest, catheterisation, dressing procedures, minor operation theatres and emergency procedure rooms. These investigations may be routine for healthcare professionals, but for the patient they are deeply personal moments deserving the highest standards of privacy and respect.
Healthcare is not judged solely by sophisticated equipment or modern buildings. True quality is reflected in how respectfully the most vulnerable patient is treated. Privacy, modesty and dignity are not luxuries; they are essential components of ethical healthcare. Unfortunately, many women continue to experience unnecessary discomfort because female healthcare personnel are unavailable during sensitive procedures. Doctors working in busy government hospitals readily acknowledge this hesitation. Female patients frequently request that a female staff member remain present during ECGs or ultrasounds. Many delay investigations until one becomes available. Others quietly leave without completing the test.
At one of City’s main referral hospitals, for example, there has reportedly been only one female assistant in the ECG section during routine hours, and she is not a trained ECG technician. After evening duty, female assistance becomes even more difficult to access. Similar situations are reported from district hospitals where privacy curtains are inadequate, unrestricted movement of staff continues during examinations, and women often choose private diagnostic centres despite the additional financial burden.The situation becomes even more challenging during night shifts. Emergencies do not follow office timings. Heart attacks, trauma, abdominal emergencies and obstetric complications frequently occur after midnight. Yet many hospitals operate with skeletal staff during these hours, and female technical personnel are often unavailable. No woman experiencing a medical emergency should have to choose between timely treatment and preserving her dignity. This is not merely an issue of comfort. It is an issue of trust. It is an issue of patient safety. It is an issue of women’s rights.
Jammu and Kashmir is fortunate to have a woman leading its Health Department. Health Minister Madam Sakina Itoo ji understands, perhaps more instinctively than most, the importance of privacy, modesty and dignity in healthcare. Her tenure presents an opportunity to institutionalise patient-sensitive reforms that women across the Union Territory have long awaited. A simple administrative directive ensuring the presence of female staff during intimate diagnostic and clinical procedures would restore confidence in public hospitals and reaffirm that patient dignity is central to quality healthcare. Such a reform would neither be controversial nor expensive. It would simply reflect compassionate governance.
Equally important is restoring discipline inside our hospitals. During a recent visit to a procedure room in a nearby teaching hospital of our city, while waiting for my turn I noticed a man in civil dress, repeatedly entering and leaving while a patient was undergoing treatment. He wore neither a hospital uniform nor an identification badge. Concerned, I asked who he was. He casually replied that he belonged to the maintenance department and had come to repair a window latch. His answer was disturbing. Why had he entered an active procedure room without knocking? Why had he not sought permission? Why was he not accompanied by the gatekeeper (hospital staff) who controls patient flow at the clinic door? What if the patient had been a woman undergoing an intimate examination? And it was young female who entered clinic before me and story is doctor was female too, she shared the discipline and professionalism issues when asked about the protocol, the reply, was ’you are looking ethics, professionalism, sir, here it is a dream, was s regret how small things at POC -point of contact are missed and cause patient dissatisfaction. “A question I often ask myself is: Kya yeh ‘kaam chalo’ system aisey hi aage bhi chalta rahega? Or is this recurring discomfort an untold signal from above—a reminder that we are not meant to accept mediocrity, but to strive for ihsan (excellence), reform what we can, and leave this world a little better than we found it?”This incident illustrates a larger problem. Privacy is compromised not only by the absence of female staff but also by the absence of basic hospital etiquette.
Across the world, hospitals enforce simple but vital rules. Staff identify themselves. They wear visible identity cards. They knock before entering examination rooms. Access is restricted to authorised personnel. Every patient’s privacy is protected regardless of age, gender or social status. These are not expensive reforms. They are habits of professionalism. They are doable system changes. Patient dignity begins at the door. Whenever this issue is raised, the familiar explanation is offered—staff shortage. Certainly, manpower constraints, overburdening rush exist. But shortage alone cannot justify compromising a woman’s dignity. Even where female nurses or attendants are available, deployment often lacks planning. Sensitive diagnostic areas should receive priority. Several accredited private hospitals have already demonstrated that this is entirely achievable. At institutions such as Manipal Hospitals, ECGs and similar procedures involving female patients are routinely performed with female technologists or attendants present whenever required. If private hospitals can incorporate dignity into routine practice, government hospitals can certainly do the same.The legal and ethical framework already supports these reforms.
Article 21 of the Constitution guarantees every citizen the right to life and personal dignity. The National Human Rights Commission’s Charter of Patients’ Rights recognises the patient’s right to privacy and respectful care and supports the presence of a female attendant during examinations conducted by male practitioners. The Clinical Establishments Act emphasises dignity, confidentiality and privacy, while premier institutions such as AIIMS, New Delhi, have institutional protocols requiring female staff or chaperones during sensitive examinations. The policies already exist. What remains absent is consistent implementation.
The solutions are straightforward. Every ECG room, echocardiography unit, ultrasound suite, dressing room and procedure area involving physical exposure should have at least one trained female healthcare worker available during all working hours. Every district and sub-district hospital should ensure round-the-clock availability of female technical staff or trained female attendants for emergencies. Hospitals must establish and enforce Standard Operating Procedures protecting patient privacy. No unauthorised individual should enter examination rooms. Every employee—including maintenance personnel—should wear proper identification. Knocking before entering, obtaining permission and restricting unnecessary movement should become mandatory standards of hospital etiquette. Training programmes/sessions A in patient rights, medical ethics and professional communication should be compulsory for every category of hospital employee—not only doctors and nurses, but technicians, attendants, security staff, housekeeping personnel and maintenance workers. Respect for privacy is everyone’s responsibility.
These reforms require commitment more than money. Above all, they require empathy. No woman should ever postpone an ECG because she fears embarrassment. No woman should avoid a hospital because she worries about losing her privacy. No woman should have to choose between her health and her dignity. Respecting a woman’s privacy is not an act of courtesy. It is not a favour. It is a constitutional obligation, an ethical responsibility and a hallmark of quality healthcare. The time has come for Jammu and Kashmir to lead by example by making female assistance during intimate medical procedures a standard of care across every government hospital.
Because healing begins with trust. And trust begins with dignity.
Dr. Fiaz Maqbool Fazili is a Senior Consultant Surgeon, Healthcare Policy Analyst, Clinical Auditor, and an international expert in healthcare quality, patient safety, and hospital accreditation. He writes regularly on healthcare reforms, quality improvement, and public policy in Jammu & Kashmir.
