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| ORIGINAL ARTICLE |
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| Year : 2007 | Volume
: 53
| Issue : 2 | Page : 87-90 |
Bullying among trainee doctors in Southern India: A questionnaire study
KL Bairy1, P Thirumalaikolundusubramanian2, G Sivagnanam3, S Saraswathi3, A Sachidananda1, A Shalini1
1 Department of Pharmacology, Kasturba Medical College, Manipal, Karnataka, India
2 Department of Medicine, Madurai Medical College, Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India
3 Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Asian Institute of Medicine, Science and Technology, Sg Petani, Malaysia
Correspondence Address:
K L Bairy
Department of Pharmacology, Kasturba Medical College, Manipal, Karnataka
India
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/0022-3859.32206
Background: Workplace bullying is an important and serious issue in a healthcare setting because of its potential impact on the welfare of care-providers as well as the consumers. Aims: To gauge the extent of bullying among the medical community in India; as a subsidiary objective, to assess the personality trait of the bullying victims. Settings and Design: A cross-sectional, anonymous, self-reported questionnaire survey was undertaken among a convenient sample of all the trainee doctors at a Government Medical College in Tamil Nadu, India. Materials and Methods: A questionnaire, in English with standard written explanation of bullying was used. Basic information like age, sex, job grade and the specialty in case of Postgraduates (PGs) were also collected. Statistical Analysis: The results were subjected to descriptive statistical analysis and Chi-square test for comparison of frequencies. Results: A total of 174 doctors (115 PGs and 59 junior doctors), took part in the study with a cent percent response. Nearly half of the surveyed population reported being subjected to bullying. Nearly 54 (53%) of the men and 35 (48%) of women were subjected to bullying. Significant proportions ( P <0.0001) of medical personnel and paramedical staff bullied the PGs and junior doctors, respectively. More than 85 (90%) of bullying incidents went unreported. A significant ( P <0.0001) percentage of PGs and junior doctors revealed a personality trait towards bully. Conclusions: Workplace bullying is common among trainee doctors and usually goes unreported.
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