Bullying among trainee doctors in Southern India: A questionnaire study

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.

Keywords
Humans, medical students or physicians, prejudice or bullying, social behavior