A situation ignored in the healthcare: a systematic review of sexual harassment against healthcare professionals.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to systematically examine the findings of previous studies conducted in Türkiye on sexual harassment against healthcare professionals and to explore their experiences of sexual harassment.

METHOD: The study, which was conducted with the systematic review method, was conducted within the framework of the PRISMA protocol, various keywords were searched in national and international databases and 16 studies were included in the review.

RESULTS

The exposure rate of sexual harassment varies between 0.0% and 75.0%. Female healthcare professionals, nurses, those aged 28-34 and those working in inpatient clinics are more likely to be subjected to sexual harassment. Healthcare professionals most frequently reported doctors as harassers. It has been found that healthcare professionals subjected to sexual harassment often did nothing and ignored the behavior.

CONCLUSION

Further and in-depth research is needed to understand the experiences and coping methods of health workers who experience sexual harassment in Türkiye, and the impact of culture on them. Gender norms, stigmatization and workplace hierarchies often prevent reporting. Strategies should be developed by health policy makers to address these barriers.