NHS radiographers told to check if men are pregnant

Radiographers in multiple NHS hospitals have been advised to check if men are pregnant before conducting scans as part of inclusivity guidance.
Patients are said to have been left embarrassed by the suggestion that their sex was not obvious, with men reportedly storming out of appointments.
The advice is included in a document developed by the Society of Radiographers called “inclusive pregnancy status guidelines for ionising radiation”.
Radiation from certain scans, including MRI, CT and X-Ray, can be harmful to unborn babies. The document draws on an incident involving a transgender male patient who underwent a CT scan without checks and was found to have been pregnant.
But forms designed to be inclusive have caused confusion and anger among patients and pose a risk to their safety, radiographers told The Telegraph. One claimed that a man on a two-week urgent cancer pathway “was so annoyed by the questions on the form, he shouted, he left the department and didn’t actually have a scan”.
“There is an unnecessary risk for these patients if they do get so annoyed and don’t have the scan,” the radiographer added.
In another example, the newspaper reported, an inpatient requiring daily scans after esophageal surgery had “a sense of doubt” instilled by being asked daily whether he was a man at the radiology department where he was being treated.
Women were said to have been left in tears by questions about their fertility, including having to explain why they could not be pregnant.
It is thought that multiple hospitals in different parts of England are using variations of the form, although an NHS source stressed to The Times that this was not national NHS England guidance.
Concerns have also been raised about children being asked for their preferred names and pronouns, reportedly making parents “furious”.
The guidance states: “When talking with patients, it is important not to assume the pronouns they use.
“A patient should always be asked: ‘What pronouns would you like me to use for you?’ And: ‘How would you like to be addressed?’ Throughout the time a patient is in the care of a healthcare professional, the patient should always be referred to as they have indicated they would like to be addressed, including the use of their preferred name.”
Fiona McAnena, the director of campaigns at Sex Matters, said: “Everyone is either male or female and it’s essential to have that fact on our medical records, not just because only women can be pregnant but for everyone’s health needs. Instead, trans activists have been removing sex-specific language and claiming you can’t know without asking who is male and who’s female.
“When healthcare workers are expected to play along with this nonsense, this is where you end up. It’s a waste of valuable time in the health service.”