Is it permissible for a student to examine the abdomen of a patient – male or female – and to touch the area between the navel and the pubic region, knowing that the exam does not entail success or failure, and this is necessary for the examination?

The mentioned area is considered part of the awrah (intimate parts) for both men and women. For women, it is an accentuated awrah which it is impermissible to touch or look at, except out of necessity, dire need, or a proven legitimate interest. If learning medicine requires it, then there is no harm; otherwise, it is impermissible. It is permissible to expose and view the awrah when there is a need and a legitimate interest, such as medical students viewing women in operations related to gynecology and obstetrics, in order to qualify Muslim doctors, thereby averting the need for non-Muslims and the ensuing harms.