Call for investigation after survey finds female surgeons in the NHS have been sexually abused

An independent inquiry should be carried out to investigate reports of sexual misconduct in the NHS, the Liberal Democrats have said, following a survey that found almost one in three female surgeons had been sexually abused in the last five years.

The British Journal of Surgery survey also found that 29% of women who responded had experienced unwanted physical advances at work, and 11 cases of rape were reported by surgeons who took part in the study.

Liberal Democrat health spokeswoman Daisy Cooper told the PA news agency the findings were the latest in a series of revelations about sexual misconduct in the NHS in recent years and she is calling for a public inquiry.

Ms Cooper told PA: “We have had a number of revelations, there has been a sort of drip-drip effect over a number of months and years in relation to allegations of sexual misconduct that are widespread across NHS premises.”

“There have been many examples of this happening between NHS staff from one colleague to another, but also examples where it has been perpetrated by a member of staff towards patients.”

“This is something I have been raising in Parliament for (almost) three years and we continue to have reports of this nature.”

“What we had today is really, really shocking.”

She added: “Having raised this issue time and time again in Parliament, it is now truly time for the Government to launch an independent inquiry.”

She pointed to figures published in May showing that more than 35,000 incidents of sexual misconduct or violence were recorded in the NHS in England between 2017 and 2022.

Ms Cooper said: “The Government should have responded to this years ago.” But now, as new revelations continue to emerge about the scale of this problem, it really is time for the Government to do something. You just can’t wait any longer.

“There is clearly a culture of silence within the NHS on this issue and I think we owe it to patients and NHS staff to bring this to light.”

She told the House of Commons the reports were “equally serious as some of the revelations of sexual misconduct within the Met Police”, prompting a review of standards at the force.

Ms Cooper also called for a date to be set by which the General Medical Council can lift its five-year rule on prosecuting allegations that are more than five years old unless the investigation is in the public interest Bespoke NHS complaints procedure for complaints of a sexual nature, as well as a dedicated NHS complaints code to enable greater transparency about the extent of the problem.

The British Journal of Surgery report concluded: “Sexual misconduct is common and appears to remain uncontrolled in the surgical environment due to a combination of a highly hierarchical structure and an imbalance between gender and power.”

“The result is an unsafe work environment and an unsafe space for patients.”

The study, compiled by the University of Exeter from 1,436 responses to an anonymous online survey, was commissioned by the Working Party on Sexual Misconduct in Surgery – a group of NHS surgeons, clinicians and researchers who say they are “working to to raise awareness of sexual misconduct.” in surgery to bring about cultural and organizational change.”

Consultant surgeon Tamzin Cuming, chair of the Women in Surgery Forum at the Royal College of Surgeons of England, said the report presented “some of the most shocking facts ever revealed in the field” and “represents a MeToo moment for the… Surgery”.

Dr. Binta Sultan, chair of NHS England’s national clinical network for sexual assault and abuse services, said the report showed “clear evidence” that action was needed to make hospitals a safer environment.

She told the BBC: “We are already taking important steps to achieve this, including by pledging to provide more support and clear reporting mechanisms for those who have suffered harassment or inappropriate behavior.”

Tim Mitchell, president of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, said such behavior had no place “anywhere in the NHS”.

He called it “abhorrent” and said: “We will not tolerate such behavior within our ranks.”

This is a separate study that examined training on sexual misconduct among medical students in the United Kingdom.

As part of the investigation, researchers at the University of Cambridge sent Freedom of Information requests to the UK’s 34 medical schools.

Their report, published in the journal JRSM Open, found that only 53% provided “some or good sexual harassment training.”

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said: “The Health and Social Care Secretary (Steve Barclay) is clear that sexual violence or misconduct of any kind is unacceptable and has no place in the NHS.

“He is working closely with NHS leaders to stamp out this unacceptable behavior and ensure services are always safe for staff and patients.

“Working with the Royal Colleges, staff, regulators and unions, the NHS recently launched the health system’s first organizational sexual safety charter. The signatories commit to adopting and enforcing a zero-tolerance approach to any unwanted, inappropriate and/or harmful sexual behavior in the workplace.”