One of the most overlooked issues in the healthcare industry is the rising number of sexual harassment victims which usually are nurses and rescuers who are rendering care. This harassment can come from their colleagues or patients which means that they are always at risk for this type of abuse and that it may happen at any given time during working hours. This is why it is important for nurses and rescuers especially those who practice community care CPR and first aid in more oppressed areas to educate themselves with the facts that can raise awareness regarding the issue. This would also help them realize the risk that they are into whenever they are rendering care during emergency cases. Here are some of the facts about sexual harassment in the healthcare industry.
It is a global problem
According to a survey that was published in the United States National Library of Medicine website, sexual harassment is prevalent among nurses in Taiwan. In this particular survey, 175 out of the 307 subjects have experienced a form of sexual harassment at work. It was also discovered in this study that the cases of verbal harassment are more common than non-verbal harassment. In a similar study that was conducted in Nepal, more than 40% of the respondents admitted that they experienced a form of sexual harassment in their workplace.
Who are the perpetrators?
According to the study that was conducted in Nepal, doctors were the perpetrators in 37% of the sexual harassment cases that were noted. The patient’s relatives on the other hand, were the perpetrators in the 26% of cases. This means that doctors or colleagues can also be the suspects when it comes to sexual harassment in the healthcare industry. In a news article that was published in the ABC News website, a female doctor was awarded $168 million from a California sexual harassment lawsuit. The female doctor was reportedly being relentlessly harassed by coworkers and was fired by the hospital administration after she filed a complaint. This just goes to show that nurses, rescuers and doctors should be aware of the problem.
A CPR and first aid class can help avoid the problem by teaching students how they should handle themselves during these types of situations. These classes can also teach them the proper ethics that should be followed in the workplace setting so that they can properly identify inappropriate behavior.
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