Introduction: It has long been known that gynaecological examination causes a lot of negative emotions for most women. The aim of the study was to learn the views of women on the issue of gynaecological examination.
Materials and methods: The study involved 1200 women from the West Pomeranian and Łódź provinces in Poland.
Results: The majority of non-pregnant women considered gynaecological examination to be embarrassing. The most embarrassing moment of the visit for the respondents from both groups was lying down on the gynaecological chair, and the most unpleasant stage of examination was palpation through the vagina. The greatest sense of security and mental comfort during the examination was provided by the presence of only the gynaecologist. Most pregnant respondents prefer to be examined by a male gynaecologist. Respondents would most willingly have examinations with a doctor who is nice, talkative, calm, smiling and mature. Most of the pregnant surveyed women claimed that the gynaecological examination is very necessary, while only 49% would appear for it once every 6 months.
Conclusions: 1. Gynaecological examination was significantly more embarrassing and stressful for women who were not pregnant. 2. In the opinion of pregnant women, breast examination is the least embarrassing stage of the examination. 3. Pregnant women significantly more often chose a man as their gynaecologist. 4. The frequency of having a gynaecological examination depended significantly on the status of pregnancy. 5. The expectations of the surveyed women to a gynaecologist focused mainly on him/her maintaining a sense of intimacy and security, on informing the women on the procedures taken, as well as on a nice and individual approach.