Does a female need to be present if the doctor checking you is male?

[trumi]

I was wondering if this is a rule everywhere:
If a male doctor needs to check a ANATOMICAL 'female' patient, a female nurse or whatever has to be present in the room?  Also, does this apply to genitalia only or anal area too? 
I heard mixed answers to whoever I asked.  I think it's ridiculous but I had a horrible experience recently where I was so insulted that I couldn't even defend myself properly because I was already in so much pain.  I rather suffer alone and let my body be done with rather than humiliation any day, I hate my life to begin with.

Also, I meant to put this in the 'Transsexual" section.

[Ms Grace]

I think different clinics make their own rules on this matter. It all boils down to wanting to avoid potential future lawsuits from allegations of sexual assault by the male doctors - unfortunately that is something some of them get up to. Medical examination of the genital area can be quite invasive and may be triggering for some and seem like sexual assault when that is not the case, they presumably require a female nurse to be present to corroborate the story of the doctor in case an allegation is made. I know my clinic has it as an option, not a requirement.

[Tysilio]

It's certainly something a patient can request, whether female or male. There would be nothing at all unusual about asking for another person to be present.

[smittydoyle]

You can certainly request / find a female doc.
I'd had a male gynecologist in the past, no female doc in the room so...I mean, maybe a minor's parents would want a woman in the room....

[Arch]

Being examined by female docs is triggering for me, so I always have a male GYN. But I also get pretty freaked when a female observer is in the room. What a mess.

I started having GYN exams again after a long hiatus. I always arrange to have male practitioners. Once, my male GP did the exam. Then, I had a male GYN doc, didn't like him very much, and switched to my current (male) GYN. I also had to have some ultrasounds done, so I requested a male tech. Chaperone requirements have been all over the map.

My GP wanted a nurse in the room, but when he saw how I was, he agreed to do the exam without her. We had a longstanding relationship, though.

The first GYN had a female nurse with him. I was very disturbed, but I couldn't request that she stay out because I didn't know this doctor well enough to speak up for myself. I sort of went mute on the subject.

The second (and current) GYN has, by my request, arranged to have a male nurse present whenever I have an appointment. (Once, the male nurse was unavailable, and once he could not be there for a semi-emergency.)

The ultrasound tech had a form for me to sign to waive the chaperone.

I always specify my needs up front and see what can be done for me. My phobia has gotten rather worse since that first GYN appointment; I disassociated once and nearly passed out the second time. Yeah, I got me a few hang-ups. The bottom line is that you have the right to ask for what you need. You might not always be accommodated, but do ask well in advance. And if you simply prefer a female doc, you should be able to switch to one.

[FTMax]

They may have their own rules about it based on their experiences (like if there have been allegations in the past or something). But if they don't, I think it's down to your preference.

My doctor is female but always examines me alone. The surgeon who did my top surgery is female and examined me alone. The doctor who did my hysterectomy is female and examined me with a male doctor in the room. The surgeon who is doing my bottom surgery is male and examined me with a male nurse practitioner in the room. But I truly don't care who sees me naked as long as they're involved in my care. I also don't mind medical students, because I think it's good for them to meet trans patients.

But if you don't feel good about something, speak up. Doctors don't want you to be uncomfortable because uncomfortable people stop showing up to get the care they need.

[trumi]

Thanks for the responses everyone.
I know that from my original post, my thoughts were kind of unorganized. I don't talk to any of this issue in real life except to my doctor but I had this experience in an emergency room.  I still find it disturbing and I will never go to them again.Mine wasn't even a GYN but rather back part.
If this helps, here is exactly what happened: 

So there was first a female nurse who was taking information from me and then the male doctor came.  Since I never had an anal exam before I asked if I needed to take off everything and asked if it was possible for me to just lay on my stomach (for an obvious reason) She straight up told me that:
"because you're a female, a female has to be in the room when a male doctor examines you. "
...
I already had my armband saying MALE... but how stupidly weak of me for being in shock upon hearing such horror.  And because I was in so much pain, all I could say was "can you not look at my direction and turn around"...
and she did.  It was just so horrible.  I mean I will never go to ANYONE if that's a rule because like Arch, I can't stand females. It makes my mood worse than it already was to begin with.

I was so stupid that even just writing this I blame myself. Oh and upon exiting, she asked me when my last period was and all I could do was continuously shaking my head (when I was already in shock of what she initially said) saying that I don't get that thing. 
I COULDN'T EVEN SAY THAT I WASN'T A FEMALE!

I guess it depends on the doctor after all. It was plesant to know that a male nurse was present while a male examined you FTMax. I don't think gender should matter if the patient trusts the doctor.

[FTMax]

I know this doesn't help you because it sounds like it was an outpatient visit, but if anyone is in a situation where they're encountering bad or insensitive care like this in an inpatient setting in the US, please ask to speak to a nurse manager and specifically mention HCAHPS (pronounced H-caps) scores. If hospitals don't score perfectly, they will not be reimbursed by the government and they start getting perks taken away. No bonuses at the end of the year, no incentives like free meals. It is something that they take very seriously, and you can use it as leverage to improve the quality of care you're receiving.

These are the questions it asks if anyone is curious. Multiple ones about respect and courtesy, which would easily apply to situations like trumi described:

http://www.hcahpsonline.org/files/March%202016_Survey%20Instruments_English_Mail.pdf

[arice]

Clinics here are required to offer it to all patients if they are being examined by a doctor of the "opposite" sex.

Sent from my SM-G870W using Tapatalk

[Arch]

Jeez, don't beat yourself up. When we are in stressful situations, we don't always act as we would like to. I felt plenty stupid for getting dizzy when I was in to see the GYN that time--and I gave the nurse quite a scare--but I already knew I would get a bit freaky, so I've been able to let it go. It's just the way things are with me.

I suspect that different facilities have different policies, but I've been told that the point is not to have a female in the room but to have a chaperone (of whatever sex). Now that you have a little distance, you might be able to get in touch with the hospital and find out what the official policy is. Not a verbal policy but a written one. And if you feel that you were disrespected--it's even worse in an emergency situation--then by all means register your disapproval. Health care personnel do need to be prepared for trans patients, and their policies should accommodate people of all kinds.