Sexual harassment of nurses has increasingly become an occupational hazard in the healthcare profession. Nurses are more likely to experience numerous offensive behaviors compared to other professionals in the healthcare sector. This is because their task brings them both emotionally and physically close to patients and other staff members. Thus, nurses are exposed to elevated rates of sexual harassment than any other person in their profession. Kahsay et al. (2020) argue that one in four nurses globally has reported being sexually harassed in line of duty. Female nurses are more likely to experience harassment compared to their male counterparts. Further, they are more likely to be harassed by their patients compared to any other person that they interact with. This paper is aimed at exploring this problem by focusing on the nurse leader’s role in its resolution.
Sexual Harassment of Female Nurses in the Workplace: A Background
Female nurses are more likely to be sexually harassed in their workplace compared to their male counterparts. For instance, a report released in 2018 showed that 73% of female nurses had reported being sexually harassed compared to 46% of males ( Frellick , 2018). Cases of sexual harassment of nurses by their patients were also noted to be high, with upto80% of female nurses reporting such incidences globally. Generally, sexual harassment refers to any offensive and an unwelcome act of sexual nature that makes targeted workers feel uncomfortable, intimated, or humiliated. These may take the form of an unwelcome request for sexual favors, unwelcome sexual advances, as well as other forms of physical or verbal conduct that are sexual directed towards an individual in his or her workplace ( Kahsay et al., 2020). This unwelcome physical, visual, nonverbal, or verbal conduct is not only sexual in nature but also based on the gender of the targeted individual.
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The nursing profession is dominated by women. Therefore, female nurses are more prone to sexual harassment in their workplace. A previous study established that about 91% of nurses have reported their encounter with at least one form of sexual harassment. Likewise, 30% and 5% reported their experiences with more than three and five or more forms, respectively ( Kahsay et al., 2020). Sexual harassment in the workplace is often considered an occupational health and safety hazard. Despite this recognition, the issue is often unreported and thus invisible. This lapse is mainly owed to the fact that most nurses rarely report cases of harassment. Likewise, most nurses have, over years of practice, developed a thick skin allowing them to ignore incidences of sexual harassment. Failure to report may also be attributed to fear of ridicule or retribution on the nurse's part or lack of confidence in those responsible for carrying out investigations. Consequently, sexual harassment of nurses by patients ends up receiving little attention despite its impact on the affected individuals.
Sexual harassment of nurses affects them in various ways. Besides affecting their mental health, such incidences may affect the victim’s goals of advancing their careers ( Kahsay et al., 2020). Nurses that have been sexually harassed by their patients are likely to suffer numerous psychological conditions. Key among these include sleep disorders, depression, lowered self-esteem, anxiety, weight gain or loss, nausea, headaches, and sexual dysfunction, among others. These health consequences of sexual harassment are of particular interest to nurse leaders. This is because they are likely to affect the productivity of affected nurses, thus putting patients in harm's way. Consequently, the role of nurse leaders in resolving the issue cannot be overstated.
N urse L eader’s R ole in Addressing Sexual Harassment of Nurses by Patients
A nurse can respond in various ways when sexually harassed in the workplace. Possible strategies include changing assignments, creating firm and clear boundaries, and expressing her displeasure with the patient in question. While this is important, nurse leaders are expected to play a more prominent role in protecting nurses from sexual harassment. In particular, nurse leaders have the responsibility of creating a work environment that is harassment-free. It is also their responsibility to discourage and put measures in place to ensure that the organizational culture is not supportive of any indecent behavior. This can be achieved through;
Communication with stakeholders : It is critical for nurse leaders to bring all stakeholders together in the fight against sexual harassment. In particular, the nurse leaders should bring on board all members of staff, visitors, patients, and patients' families. The nurse leaders should develop an anti-harassment policy then communicate it to these stakeholders. The policy also has to be enforced strongly so as to promote compliance. Key components of the policy include zero-tolerance for sexual harassment, protection of nurses, the neutrality of the reporting process, impartiality, confidentiality, and possible corrective efforts.
Training: Nurse leaders should ensure that all nurses are trained in their rights and duties. Training promotes sensitization, thus guaranteeing that nurses can identify and comfortably report any cases of sexual harassment. It only by doing this that these cases can be resolved.
Budget: In order for a nurse leader to be successful in addressing sexual harassment in the workplace, he or she has to set aside a budget to facilitate the process. This budget would cater to such efforts as training, awareness creation, consultations, documentation, and legal representation where need be, among others.
Change management: Nurse leaders often act as agents of change, and thus for any project to succeed, their involvement cannot be overstated. As change agents, nurses have to change themselves and build the capacity of those around them. To address sexual harassment of female nurses, nurse leaders can employ Havelock’s Theory of Change ( Udod, S., & Wagner , 2018). Based on this theory, the nurse would need to build a relationship with the current situation; diagnose the problem; acquire resources required for the change; select a pathway for the desired change; establish and manage the change, and lastly, monitor the process to ensure success.
Authority: As a change agent, a nurse leader is furnished with power. This way, he or she can guide and direct the desired change. Thus, a nurse leader has to exercise this power through a call to action. It is only then that he or she can effectively foster followership and inspire adherence to the guidelines put in place to address sexual harassment in the workplace.
References
Frellick, M. (2018). Harassment from patients prevalent, poll shows. Medscape Medical News .
Kahsay, W. G., Negarandeh, R., Nayeri, N. D., & Hasanpour, M. (2020). Sexual harassment against female nurses: a systematic review. BMC nursing , 19 (1), 1-12 .
Udod, S., & Wagner, J. (2018). Common Change Theories and Application to Different Nursing Situations. Leadership and Influencing Change in Nursing .
