Patient harassment of medical staff in Japan

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  • 患者ハラスメントの実態調査とその対策に関する研究
  • カンジャ ハラスメント ノ ジッタイ チョウサ ト ソノ タイサク ニ カンスル ケンキュウ

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In order to determine the current status of patient harassment of medical professionals in Japan, we conducted a survey of 16 medical facilities from throughout the country. We defined patient harassment as constituting “an unjust demand on, or abusive language or violence (including sexual harassment) toward medical staff by a patient or a patient's family." The participating facilities reported only 116 cases, which were much fewer than expected. It was assumed that the cause was either underreporting due to a lack of understanding of what constitutes patient harassment or was a result of a problem with the data collection procedure. Patient harassment was reported by medical staff in all positions and at all times of the day, with male patients in their 40's as the assailant in many cases.<br>In less than half of the cases it was found that the patient harassment concerned an entirely false charge against the staff member. More than half of the cases were considered to have resulted from a problem peculiar to the patient's medical treatment, which concerned the illness itself or a mistake in care that was considered not to be serious from a medical viewpoint.<br>Although many victims were female nurses, staff members from across a wide range of medical fields were subject to harassment. Staff reported not only a feeling of fear and displeasure, but in many cases also reported becoming pessimistic. Thus, immediate measures against patient harassment of medical staff are required.

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