No woman really enjoys a visit to the gynae, just as no man (openly) enjoying having his prostate checked. Both require some fairly up-close and personal time with your genitals.  Although there is always a level of awkwardness to this encounter due to our body-shaming society, building a relationship and trusting your doctor is definitely a must in order for you to feel safe as a patient.

There are plenty of jokes about male gynaecologists and their proximity to vaginas. It is, however, far less funny when you actually discover that the man you trust to do the most personal medical exam many women will ever go through, has been taking pictures of your genitals! If that wasn’t creepy enough, how about learning he has been conducting unnecessary and unorthodox exams for over 25 years?!

That pen dangling from the docs neck could actually be a camera, photographing your exposed bits.

[Dr. Nikita] Levy had several such cameras in his office and on his person when hospital security paid him a visit a day later. Officials said they discovered Levy had used the devices to take photos and videos during his appointments, turning thousands of patients over 25 years into thousands of potential victims.

Levy was escorted out of the hospital, and less than two weeks later, facing a criminal investigation by Baltimore police, he killed himself.

A class-action lawsuit against the hospital soon followed. On Monday, attorneys for Johns Hopkins and for Levy’s patients announced that they had agreed on a proposal for a $190-million settlement to be paid to the victims by the hospital system’s insurers.

It does not seem like any of the images were shared and it is not known why the Doc was so obsessed with snapping his work. As faces were usually not parts of what he was filming, it is difficult to identify exactly who his victims were. This violation of privacy definitely warrants legal action and it is highly likely that security will be stepped up at the hospital for a while to come.

Read more details on this story at Los Angeles Times