(ANSA) – ROME, AUGUST 26 – In the last three years in Italy there has been a 40% increase in episodes of physical and psychological violence against women who work in the healthcare sector. And the current summer is “a nightmare, with an average of attacks that has never been so high, reaching numbers never recorded in the last 10 years”. This is according to an analysis by the Association of Doctors of Foreign Origin in Italy (Amsi), conducted together with the Euromediterranean Medical Union and the international movement Uniti per Unire, which highlights how from August 1 to 20 there was not a single day in which a doctor or nurse was not subjected to violence. And in 80% of cases the victim was a woman.
From punches and kicks to actual sexual assaults, the alarm “does not only concern Italy, but all of Europe and is increasing exponentially in developing countries”, explains Foad Aodi, president of Amsi, Umem and Uniti per Unire.
In most cases, the perpetrators are patients or their relatives. In the world, according to the survey that cross-references data sent by referents in 120 countries, there has been a 42% increase in attacks against healthcare professionals. In Europe, 40% of them have suffered at least one act of violence and in developing countries this percentage among women reaches 95%.
“These are physical and psychological attacks, but also discrimination against professionals of foreign origin, which in recent months in Italy have seen a 35% increase”, he adds. As for the contexts in which the episodes occur, first place is given to emergency rooms, second to 118 interventions, third to psychiatric departments. “Thanks to the poor service and shortcomings of hospitals – concludes Aodi – doctors and nurses pay for the dissatisfaction of citizens, who have reached exasperation. Politics must do its part with targeted laws. But the mentality of citizens must also change”. (ANSA).
2024-08-26 13:42:27