South Africa: Bullying in Healthcare - What Is Behind the Worrying Numbers?

Recent research suggests that bullying and unhealthy workplace environments are significantly adding to the stress many healthcare workers in South Africa already face. This is unfortunately not a new problem, but there is at least hope in some quarters that it is now slowly being addressed.

Around 58% of staff at a local university's health science faculty, including those jointly working in public hospitals, report having been bullied more than once. 64% of respondents observed it happening to others. The research, recently published in the South African Medical Journal (SAMJ) by a team from the University of the Witwatersrand, defines bullying as unwanted actions that cause offence and distress to others.

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