Law guarantees women companions during consultations and exams – 10/18/2023 – Balance and Health

The governor of São Paulo, Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicans), sanctioned law 17,803, which guarantees women the right to a companion in clinical procedures such as consultations and medical examinations. The decision was published in the Official Gazette this Wednesday (18) and will undergo regulation.

The authorship of project 10/2023, which gave rise to the law, is by state deputy Rogério Nogueira (PSDB) with co-authorship by deputies Luiz Fernando T. Ferreira (PT), Rafa Zimbaldi (Citizenship), Thiago Auricchio (PL) and the former -deputy Patrícia Gama (PSDB).

The rule applies to public and private health services, which must post posters in visible and easily accessible places with information or use other means of communication.

The objective is to provide women with greater security, in addition to avoiding episodes of sexual harassment, abuse and other violence during health procedures, especially gynecological ones.

The patient who wants a companion during the consultation or exam must make the request at the reception of the health establishment, orally or in writing.

The report sought out deputy Rogério Nogueira. The parliamentarian’s legal advisor said that he was in Brasília, in a meeting with mayors, and therefore could not attend.

In January of this year, a nursing technician was arrested on suspicion of rape of a 22-year-old patient at the UPA (Emergency Care Unit) Dona Maria Antonieta Ferreira de Barros, in Grajaú, south of São Paulo.

The crime occurred on the afternoon of December 17, according to the SSP (Public Security Secretariat). At the time, the Municipal Health Department suspended the professional’s contract and the professional council opened an investigation to investigate the fact.

In March, Rio de Janeiro police arrested a radiologist in the act, after a 26-year-old patient went to the police and stated that she had been abused during an exam.

The woman went to the clinic to have a mammogram. During the procedure, he would have convinced her to undergo a transvaginal examination, which would be free of charge.

When performing it, the doctor would have asked the patient to stimulate her own clitoris to better visualize the ovary. Then, claiming that it wasn’t working, he himself started touching the young woman’s private part, without gloves, and even asked “if she would like it.”