Is it permissible for a woman to be treated or examined by a male doctor?

It is permissible where there is a genuine need, though the preferred order — when competence is comparable — is a female Muslim doctor, then a female non-Muslim doctor, then a male Muslim doctor, then a male non-Muslim doctor. Cross-gender medical care is not forbidden in itself: the female companions, such as al-Rubayyiʿ bint Muʿawwidh, went out on campaigns with the Prophet ﷺ giving the fighters water and tending the wounded (Sahih al-Bukhari 2882 and 5679), and the Sharīʿah recognises necessity as lifting prohibition — "He has explained in detail to you what He has forbidden you, excepting that to which you are compelled" (Quran 6:119). The conditions are that only the area requiring examination is uncovered, that nothing exceeds the actual medical need, and that khalwah be avoided by the presence of her husband, a mahram, or another woman. If her health is genuinely at risk and no suitable female practitioner is available, she must not delay treatment.

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