Sexual harassment from patient to medical student: a cross-sectional survey

BMC Medical Education

Research

Philip A. Stevenson¹  Vanessa Pascoe²  Jamie Garrett³  Katherine L. DeNiro⁴  Eliza Notaro⁴  Michi M. Shinohara⁴  Heather M. Mahurin⁵ 

[1] Clinical Biostatistics, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA;Department of Dermatology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA;Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA;Division of Dermatology, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Box 356524, 1959 NE Pacific St., 98195, Seattle, Washington, USA;University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA;

关键词: Sexual harassment;    Sexual assault;    Medical students;    Burnout;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12909-022-03914-6

 received in 2022-01-25, accepted in 2022-11-22,  发布年份 2022

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundThere is little existing research investigating SH/SA specifically from patients to students. This study aims to assess the prevalence and impact of SH and SA from patient to medical student.MethodsA cross-sectional survey study was administered via electronic email list to all current medical students at the University of Washington School of Medicine (n = 1183) over a two-week period in 2019. The survey questions addressed respondents’ experiences with SH/SA from patients, frequency of reporting, and impact on feelings of burnout.ResultsThree hundred eleven responses were received for a response rate of 26%; 268 complete responses were included in the final analysis. Overall, 56% of respondents reported ever experiencing SH from a patient. SH from a patient was reported by significantly more of those who identify as female compared to male (66% vs 31%; p < .001). Similar frequency of experiencing SH within the last year were reported by females and males (90% vs 88%; p = .96). Clinical students were more likely to have ever experienced SH compared to preclinical students (61% vs 39%; p < .001). The majority (86%) of respondents who experienced SH/SA did not report it in an official capacity. Those who identify as female were more likely to report that SH from a patient contributed to feelings of burnout (21% vs 5% for male; p = .02). Behaviors consistent with SA were experienced by 16% of respondents, with similar frequency between females and males.ConclusionsThis study demonstrates that patient to medical student SH/SA is a common occurrence, particularly among students identifying as female. It also highlights the significant impact of SH/SA incidents on feelings of burnout.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s) 2022

【 图 表 】

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