Physicians as Targets of Medical Workplace Violence

Should metal detectors be installed at hospital entrances? Should patients be frisked for weapons? They are some of the suggestions being offered, but frankly these cumbersome procedures are impractical for hospitals and especially for smaller clinics and offices.

The adverse effects of therapy, the gloomy prognosis of many diseases and the high cost of healthcare create enormous stresses for some patients and their families. Not every medical story has a happy ending. There have been times when some of us have felt physically threatened by disturbed patients or their family members. We are all vulnerable. Through a simple twist of fate, we could face an angry son bent on exacting sick revenge. After all, as caregivers, we represent the face of healthcare, and sometimes that face is far from pretty. And when a colleague is killed in the line of duty, we have a right to be angry, sad and scared.

Medicine is a healing art, not a violent vocation, and when bad things happen to good people, we must find the strength to forge ahead and not be deterred from our mission to make people’s lives better.

Simon M. Helfgott, MD, is associate professor of medicine in the Division of Rheumatology, Immunology and Allergy at Harvard Medical School in Boston.

References

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