More than half of female doctors sexually harassed by patients: survey

Updated

A survey of Australia's female GPs has found more than half have been sexually harassed by a patient.

The survey involved 180 doctors, and most said the experience of being sexually harassed had made them change their consulting style.

The researchers from Monash and Melbourne Universities say their findings point to a need for more training and support for the doctors.

The results show some of the most common behaviours involve people inappropriately exposing themselves and asking for inappropriate examinations.

Patients have inappropriately exposed themselves to more than half of female GPs, with 65 per cent of female doctors having fended off requests for an inappropriate examination.

Thirty per cent of those surveyed reported that they were touched or grabbed during consultations, with 36 per cent having been subjected to gender-based remarks.

Two-thirds of female doctors said the experience had caused them to change their consulting style, including becoming much more formal and not doing physical examinations.

Monash University's Dr Peter Bratuskins says most of the patients behaving inappropriately were men, but cases of sexual harassment by women were reported.

He says the female GPs responded to the inappropriate behaviour in a variety of ways.

"Becoming much more formal with their patients, refusing to do examinations or referring patients elsewhere," he told AM.

"Many also reported that they no longer wanted to work alone or after hours."

Dr Bratuskins says he is concerned that less than 7 per cent of the GPs said they had been trained on how to deal with sexual harassment by a patient.

"Training is one of the obvious things but it's a more complex problem than that," he said.

"Female practitioners need to be supported as in policy and certainly legislation has moved on to support that. In 2011 sexual discrimination was updated to include clients and customers."

He says it is also important that doctors feel they can report issues.

"Something that we have heard anecdotally is that in fact many don't report these behaviours and tend to move on and make their own changes to practice and that's something we certainly need to address," he said.

"Most practices have their own practice manuals and protocols and I think it would be useful to make it clear to doctors working in a practice that this is something that may happen and if it does happen it is something that should be reported, that the doctor will be supported and offered help, that the patient can be excluded from the practice as well."

GPs 'isolated' during consultations

Melbourne GP and AMA Victoria board member Dr Lorraine Baker says she has been harassed by patients and has heard similar stories from colleagues.

"I've been working in general practice for 30 years and I've certainly experienced this sort of behaviour – not frequently – but I have experienced it," she said.

"In most cases, you do have a sense of feeling threatened. A general practice consultation is a relatively intimate type of consultation - it's generally one on one, you are isolated.

Dr Baker says GPs need to be skilled so they can appropriately respond in difficult situations.

"I do believe no formal training is offered, and if it is offered, it's in a very theoretical way and that's what this survey exposes for me. We need to research with women GPs, and maybe with male GPs, what it is they would like to learn and how they'd like it managed if they encounter these behaviours.

"As a GP who owns my own practice, I get to direct how my practice is managed and empower myself in these situations so I don't feel threatened, and if I do I can manage it very well and subsequently avoid seeing any patients who make me feel particularly uncomfortable."

The survey results have been published in the latest issue of the Medical Journal of Australia.

Topics: doctors-and-medical-professionals, health, australia

First posted