Why are males expected to take their shirts off during OMM?

[073116]

I mean it's almost like they don't even ask, they just expect you to take your shirt. In some cases instructors even told us to take them off to "feel the fascia". I'm usually sweating excessively, I'm overweight and I don't feel comfortable standing all sweaty with upper part of the body naked in front of the class of non sweaty people. Besides, my partner would probably wish that I left my shirt on after touching my sweaty oily skin. I think it would be best for everyone to let males decide if they want to take shirt off or not. I mean females almost 99% never take their shirts off, tho they could do it too as they wear sports bras and yet they don't (with rare exceptions). So why it's expected from males to take them off then, isn't it sexism too? I've heard before many said about OMM been done in t-shirts no problem and yet our school is weird in this regard 🙁 So what's the deal here, is it so hard to perform OMM techniques without taking shirts off? And instructors don't even ask if I mind taking it off or not - they just say take it off like it's a normal thing to do for 100% of males. No consideration for any issues student might have at all. And it's every single freaking time like that, not just some labs where we need to "feel the fascia", but every single time...

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[West Coaster]

I don't know what school you go to, but females in our class had to take off their shirts too. After doing two years of OMM, I think you could probably do it shirt on or off, however I think learning OMM is easier with the shirt off.

 

[wxman393]

I'm just curious about your school and what they presented to you during your interviews. I attended numerous interviews and all of the packets had a piece of paper regarding the physical/mental/emotional/professional requirements that you must accept to attend that school. A majority of it was in regards to OMM and being comfortable in the lab interacting with the opposite gender and removing certain layers of clothing.

At our school, if you go into an OMM/Primary skills practical and you don't adequately expose, palpate on top of a shirt, or try to auscultate on top of a shirt, you fail.

Edit: Females at our school also are required to go down to their sports bras. However, if we are only doing ME on the lower extremities or something of that nature, shirts always stay on.

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[Dr. Death]

School dependent. We took our shirts off the first day and the instructors told us we'd never have to do so again. So maybe the school you choose won't be that bad.

 

[darknecrosforte]

Take it as an opportunity to empathize with future patients and learn to drape perfectly and respect patient dignity as much as possible. Take your dang shirt off. Females should do it too (sports bras ofc). WesternU will let u keep shirts on for non-torso stuff so woohoo for sacral!

 

[Pisiform]

they just wanna see your man boobs ! Flash them and please OMM gurus!

 

[FourniersGreenGang]

At my school everyone has to take their shirt off if we're working on an area covered by it. This could be good motivation for you to try to lose some weight if you'd like to try.

 

[Rekt]

I mean it's almost like they don't even ask, they just expect you to take your shirt. In some cases instructors even told us to take them off to "feel the fascia". I'm usually sweating excessively, I'm overweight and I don't feel comfortable standing all sweaty with upper part of the body naked in front of the class of non sweaty people. Besides, my partner would probably wish that I left my shirt on after touching my sweaty oily skin. I think it would be best for everyone to let males decide if they want to take shirt off or not. I mean females almost 99% never take their shirts off, tho they could do it too as they wear sports bras and yet they don't (with rare exceptions). So why it's expected from males to take them off then, isn't it sexism too? I've heard before many said about OMM been done in t-shirts no problem and yet our school is weird in this regard 🙁 So what's the deal here, is it so hard to perform OMM techniques without taking shirts off? And instructors don't even ask if I mind taking it off or not - they just say take it off like it's a normal thing to do for 100% of males. No consideration for any issues student might have at all. And it's every single freaking time like that, not just some labs where we need to "feel the fascia", but every single time...

You shouldn't be "sweaty and oily" when you go to OMM lab. Take a damn shower. Second of all, grow up. It literally does not matter at all and nobody cares what you look like. We have tons of fatties in our class and I haven't heard anyone talk about it, even among peers.

 

[073116]

You shouldn't be "sweaty and oily" when you go to OMM lab. Take a damn shower. Second of all, grow up. It literally does not matter at all and nobody cares what you look like. We have tons of fatties in our class and I haven't heard anyone talk about it, even among peers.

I'm not smelly, of course I'm taking shower. I have hyperhidrosis. It is triggered by any uncomfortable situation and I can't really control it man. It's just humiliating for me and it's not pleasant for partners to touch my skin. I should grow up right? After some cooments about man boobs and to take a damn shower I'm starting to think I'm among schoolboys rather than medical students

 

[ortnakas]

For what it's worth, females at my school have to strip down to sports bras a lot, so this isn't a male-specific problem.

I'm not smelly, of course I'm taking shower. I have hyperhidrosis. It is triggered by any uncomfortable situation and I can't really control it man. It's just humiliating for me and it's not pleasant for partners to touch my skin. I should grow up right? After some cooments about man boobs and to take a damn shower I'm starting to think I'm among schoolboys rather than medical students

Honestly-- at first, everyone around you in the first few weeks is going to be almost as uncomfortable as you are and probably won't even notice you're sweatier than average. Being shirtless and doing OMM maneuvers in public is awkward of virtually everybody. After a while, it won't be as awkward, and hopefully won't trigger your symptoms as much.

I believe there are a few medications that can help with hyperhidrosis (although they do have side effects). Talk to your doctor if you're truly concerned about this.

 

[Promethean]

Sorry to hear about the hyper hydrosis. That is a pain.

I am also heavy, and also I have big scars across my chest that pretty much advertise my medical history to everyone. It was nerve wracking to take my shirt off for about a week, then it was like, eh, whatever.

Today, I was the demonstration model for the professor to show off a technique. On the forearm. Where I have a large tattoo of a female religious figure. My forearm was on camera and being broadcast to the entire room. The doc palpated down into the interosseous membrane. This was fine, no worries. But then he started demonstrating how to manipulate the membrane and, well, he was making the nice lady dance around on my forearm. The whole room cracked up.

It was kinda funny, and it was definitely a situation where I was either going to laugh about it and go with it, or else be all upset and shy about it. Laughing is definitely more fun.

 

[akinetopsia]

Peer examination is fairly common, and of course I've heard the stories about OMM from DO student colleagues. It's really not a big deal. I've done peer exams on classmates that have a BMI of 21 and classmates with a BMI of 31. It makes no difference as far as approach, you do what you're supposed to and be professional-your future patients will come in all shapes and sizes, and it does teach you a bit about respecting a patient's privacy. If you are overheard making comments that are derisive about a classmate's physique, you're going to get in a lot of trouble.

 

[acapnial]

I mean it's almost like they don't even ask, they just expect you to take your shirt. In some cases instructors even told us to take them off to "feel the fascia". I'm usually sweating excessively, I'm overweight and I don't feel comfortable standing all sweaty with upper part of the body naked in front of the class of non sweaty people. Besides, my partner would probably wish that I left my shirt on after touching my sweaty oily skin. I think it would be best for everyone to let males decide if they want to take shirt off or not. I mean females almost 99% never take their shirts off, tho they could do it too as they wear sports bras and yet they don't (with rare exceptions). So why it's expected from males to take them off then, isn't it sexism too? I've heard before many said about OMM been done in t-shirts no problem and yet our school is weird in this regard 🙁 So what's the deal here, is it so hard to perform OMM techniques without taking shirts off? And instructors don't even ask if I mind taking it off or not - they just say take it off like it's a normal thing to do for 100% of males. No consideration for any issues student might have at all. And it's every single freaking time like that, not just some labs where we need to "feel the fascia", but every single time...

The same people that tell you you can't feel fascia through the shirt will tell you that you can feel cranial energy through the table. It's pretty dumb.

 

[samac]

You shouldn't be "sweaty and oily" when you go to OMM lab. Take a damn shower. Second of all, grow up. It literally does not matter at all and nobody cares what you look like. We have tons of fatties in our class and I haven't heard anyone talk about it, even among peers.

I'm glad that someone who's going into medicine can show such a high level of empathy.

 

[Moose A Moose]

I'm glad that someone who's going into medicine can show such a high level of empathy.

Step off the soap box. We're not expected to all be Mother Theresa 24/7.

 

[Mr Roboto]

That 0.5 mm of cotton obscures all the TART changes!

 

[samac]

Step off the soap box. We're not expected to all be Mother Theresa 24/7.

No no we're not. But to degrade someone else for their body who's their future colleague is pretty crappy.
Go back to degrading other people for their political opinions. Not their bodies.

 

[Moose A Moose]

No no we're not. But to degrade someone else for their body who's their future colleague is pretty crappy.
Go back to degrading other people for their political opinions. Not their bodies.

Spare me, Oh Noble One.

 

[Rekt]

No no we're not. But to degrade someone else for their body who's their future colleague is pretty crappy.
Go back to degrading other people for their political opinions. Not their bodies.

It was more of a descriptive term than a derogatory one. Maybe you should save some of your empathy for your simulated patients.

 

[073116]

It was more of a descriptive term than a derogatory one. Maybe you should save some of your empathy for your simulated patients.

Trump: "grabbing by the p***y was a descriptive term than a derogatory one" 🙂

 

[Dr.Jekyll75]

At my school the girls never do the guys just do it because we don't care . There maybe a few that don't like to take off their shirt and people are pretty understanding of it. The young ladies in hijabs at my school never take off any clothing nor work with male partners which is odd to me. I understand it's part of your religion but you pick the field where you have to see everybody and touch them so you probably shouldn't have gone to a DO school.


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[FistLength]

At my school the girls never do the guys just do it because we don't care . There maybe a few that don't like to take off their shirt and people are pretty understanding of it. The young ladies in hijabs at my school never take off any clothing nor work with male partners which is odd to me. I understand it's part of your religion but you pick the field where you have to see everybody and touch them so you probably shouldn't have gone to a DO school.


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I love my school and the opportunities I have gotten because of coming from a DO school, but really the majority of us are going to a DO school because we didn't want to spend an extra year(s) grinding for an MD position.

The rule that girls have to strip down to a sports bra and short shorts is ridiculous. I remember when one of the overlords of OMM told our female classmate to bend over in front of a group of guys as he palpated her spine curvature, she was obviously uncomfortable. It is reasonable to wear shirts, and if you need to pretend harder you are palpating imaginary lesions, you can ask them to raise there shirt for dramatic effect. One will master this around the 2nd or third practical.

 

[n3xa]

I'm not smelly, of course I'm taking shower. I have hyperhidrosis. It is triggered by any uncomfortable situation and I can't really control it man. It's just humiliating for me and it's not pleasant for partners to touch my skin. I should grow up right? After some cooments about man boobs and to take a damn shower I'm starting to think I'm among schoolboys rather than medical students

Did you talk to the OMM department about this? We usually sort out any issues in regards to the OMM attire, whether its medical or religious, during the OMM screening that every 1st year goes through prior to the start of classes. And if something came up during school, people would talk to the department about it. There are always surrogates available for practical exams if need be.*

* - well, at least at our school. IBymmv

 

[deleted495545]

 

[starri]

My whole class has seen my body's numerous imperfections, my tattoos, and my piercings. NBD.

The young ladies in hijabs at my school never take off any clothing nor work with male partners which is odd to me

The hijabi in my class usually wore shirts that zipped up the back so anything that required bare skin could be done while preserving their modesty the rest of the time. I do know that one or two in the class below mine tried to refuse to have male partners, but the school surprisingly put its foot down, saying that they had agreed with a mission statement that involved working on all different body types.

 

[Dr.Jekyll75]

I understand it's a religious thing but if your not willing to work with males , it's gonna be really hard doing any specialty besides obygyn or peds


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[samac]

I understand it's a religious thing but if your not willing to work with males , it's gonna be really hard doing any specialty besides obygyn or peds


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My guess is they didn't want the males touching them, not the other way around.

 

[Dr.Jekyll75]

My guess is they didn't want the males touching them, not the other way around.

Might be, but even at the white coat ceremony didn't shake hands with the dean they just bowed. Ew whatever do what you must


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[starri]

My guess is they didn't want the males touching them, not the other way around.

I believe you are correct. I believe in being sensitive to people's beliefs, but I do not agree at all with creating a rule specifically for one or two people. I mean, in very strict sects of Islam and Orthodox Judaism, there are a lot of prohibitions against what can be done to a dead body, so does that mean an adherent should be excused from Gross lab as well?

I mean, people know what they're getting into when they enroll in a DO school