Medical chaperones could protect patients from abuse. More hospitals are using them.
- Dignity 4Patients
- Apr 24
- 4 min read
By Priyanka Dayal McCluskey - The WBUR - 24.04.2025 - [USA] - [Prevention] When patients arrive for medical exams at Dr. Rachel Sisodia's office, they're offered a choice: Would they like a third person in the room while the doctor conducts the exam?
If the patient says yes, a medical assistant stands nearby while Sisodia, a gynecologic oncologist at Massachusetts General Hospital, examines her patient. It's part of a broad initiative across Mass General and its sister hospitals to incorporate professional observers — known as chaperones — into routine medical care.
The Mass General Brigham system, the largest hospital network in the state, has started offering chaperones to all patients undergoing sensitive medical exams in an effort to reduce their anxiety and protect them from potential abuse.
The new policy reflects a growing awareness in the medical field that patients are sometimes harmed by their doctors.
Mass General Brigham patients have been able to request chaperones in the past. But this change means the option is offered to them, and patients can accept or decline.
Sisodia, who serves as the health system's chief quality officer, said the new policy is designed to support patients who may be reluctant to ask for a chaperone, or who may be unaware they have the option of requesting one.
“We don’t want to have any barriers for our patients, whether they’re real or perceived, from asking for a resource that will make them more comfortable,” Sisodia said.
Mass General Brigham's policy launched last year and will be rolled out across all practices over the next several months. The new guidelines apply to patients receiving exams of the breasts, vagina, testicles, rectum and other sensitive areas, though patients can request chaperones for any kind of appointment.
Mass General Brigham revised its policies in response to high-profile incidents of medical abuse — including the case of Larry Nassar, the Michigan sports doctor who molested hundreds of women and girls; and Robert Hadden, an OB-GYN at Columbia who sexually abused his patients for decades. Closer to home, a grand jury last month indicted physician Derrick Todd on two counts of rape. Todd worked at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston — part of the Mass General Brigham system — and Charles River Medical Associates in Framingham. He is accused of assaulting the patients during their medical exams. Todd has pleaded not guilty.
More than 200 women are also suing Todd for sexual assault. They allege the rheumatologist performed lengthy breast and pelvic exams, without gloves or a speculum, which left them traumatized — even though his specialty focuses on joints, bones and ligaments. William Thompson, an attorney at the Boston firm Lubin & Meyer who represents Todd’s accusers, said Todd sometimes offered chaperones but talked patients out of using them.
“He was also scheduling patients early in the morning and into the evening hours at times where there was no chaperone available anyway,” Thompson said. “We believe he was doing that intentionally.”
Thompson said it’s important for health systems to make chaperones available, and to make sure those chaperones are properly trained.
“I'm not surprised that Mass General Brigham is updating its policies. It's probably well overdue, in my view,” he said.
Advocates for using chaperones argue that a trained third person in the exam room can help patients through what might be an awkward — or even traumatic — situation, particularly for patients who have experienced assault in the past.
The American Medical Association recommends consistent use of chaperones as a safeguard for “respecting patients' dignity.” The association says chaperones can also help prevent misunderstandings between patients and physicians.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists revised its guidance to go even further, saying chaperones should be present at all breast, genital and rectal exams, regardless of the sex or gender of the person conducting the exam — unless patients decline.
Dr. Louise Perkins King, chair of the group's ethics committee, said news reports about doctors assaulting patients convinced the organization's leaders to update their recommendations and promote the widespread use of chaperones.
“You have to increase the staffing in your clinic, which is a significant cost, but definitely worth the cost,” said King, who also works at the Brigham. “And then each of those people needs training. Chaperone in name only is not useful.”
King said patients should be able to control their medical appointments.
“You should always feel empowered to stop any interaction and say, ‘I need more information, I’m not sure I want to do that,’ ” she said. “It’s always up to you.”
At Mass General Brigham, training for chaperones includes learning where to stand and what to look for during exams — and how to report anything unusual.
Chaperone policies appear to vary widely across health care providers in the Boston area and beyond.
At Boston Medical Center, patients may request a chaperone during any visit for any reason. BMC recommends staff offer chaperones for sensitive exams and procedures, but a hospital spokesperson did not say how often this happens in practice.
Beth Israel Lahey Health and UMass Memorial Health did not respond to questions about their chaperone policies.
Some systems, like Yale New Haven Health, say they require chaperones in the room for any exam or procedure involving sensitive areas. Others, including Michigan Medicine, specify that patients are allowed to decline a chaperone. If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article and were abused in state run medical and health facilities, you can contact Dignity4Patients, whose helpline is open Monday to Thursday 10am to 4pm.
