After hours doctors should take measures to protect themselves against experiencing aggression.
This is the call from Griffith academic and Gold Coast GP Dr Chris Ifediora following a Griffith University study finding that around half of all doctors who provide after-hours house call (AHHC) services have experienced aggression in their work over the 12 months prior to the study.
The study, which is the first ever Australian study on the subject, surveyed 300 doctors employed by one of Australia’s largest AHHC providers and found that 47% had experienced an instance of aggression over the past year.
Most common was verbal abuse (48% of cases), followed by threats (27%) and vexatious complaints (13%). Property damage, physical violence, sexual harassment and stalking were all also reported by doctors.
“The odds of having experienced aggression didn’t vary greatly according to gender, although female doctors were more likely to say they were concerned or anxious about aggressive behaviour in the
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