Workplace violence against medical students- A Turkish perspective

Background: Workplace violence against healthcare providers including the medical students being an important issue all over the world. The aim of this study is to survey the medical students about exposure to workplace violence (WPV) while they are doing their medical training in private tertiary hospitals. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study carried out among all medical students (4th, 5th, and 6th class) attending a teaching hospital at Bezmialem Vakif University (BVU), Istanbul, Turkey. A total of 150 students in the 2017-2018 academic year were recruited in this study. Data were collected using a modified questionnaire through a face to face interview. Data were analyzed using SPSS 16. Results: About one-third of the surveyed students (54, 36.0%) exposed to violence and 71.3% of them witnessed incidents of violence against healthcare providers at the workplace. The prevalence of physical violence and verbal abuse among medical students was reported at 5.5% and 92.6% respectively. About 81.5% were females compared to 18.5% of their counterparts. Patients (38.9%) and their relatives (61.1%) were the main sources of the violence respectively. More than half (57.0%) of students exposed to violence at outpatient services and 25.9% at the emergency room and 16.7% at inpatient wards. Few of them (22, 14.7%) thought that they will get support if they make a complaint. Conclusion: Being a medical student and has direct contact with patients and their relative is not always safe practice. Our results suggested a high prevalence of verbal and physical abuse against medical students. Health sector authorities should adopt a restrictive and clear strategy to protect medical students and other healthcare providers.