WORKPLACE BULLYING MORE SEVERE IN HEALTHCARE?
According to researchers, bullying at work is a common issue that goes beyond just care.
The experts believe that bullying may be more prominent or extreme in healthcare because of a high-pressure atmosphere where patients ‘ lives are in danger despite previous studies showing no higher rates of bullying than other areas.  ,
They contend that prevalent bullying is caused by factors like high workloads, labor shortages, and a lack of support systems.
According to standard statistics released by The Star earlier this year, the number of building at the Ministry of Health decreased by about third between 2019 and 2023, from 6, 134 to 3, 271.
The lack of cardiac surgeons, which are 14 in Malaysia’s seven public hospitals, was also highlighted in July when four graduates of a “parallel road” training program with the Royal College of Surgeons Edinburgh applied for a combined judicial evaluation to challenge the Malaysian Medical Council’s decision to reject their applications for the National Specialist Register, a database of specialist health practitioners in the nation.  ,
In earlier media reports, experts voiced concern about the need to address the medical lack and the potential negative effects on patient care.
About two years prior, a janitor at the Penang General Hospital officially committed suicide after being bullied at work. Dr. Tay died.  ,  ,  ,
The government established a Healthcare Work Culture Improvement Task Force ( HWCITF ) in that year to look into the death of the 25-year-old and allegations of a bullying culture in its health departments.
It listed harassment, isolation, condemnation, misgendering, inflammatory speech, harassment, cruel compensation, harsh working hours and cruel workload as types of bullying.  ,  ,
The committee found no compelling evidence of workplace harassment in relation to the houseman’s death in its report released in August 2022. However, it noted that at different levels, but not at all, there was stress, abuse, and a toxic work environment within the Health Ministry.
The document also surveyed more than 110, 000 staff in the Ministry of Health. About 30 % of people admitted to having burnout, and 7 % believed they had experienced bullying at work.
More than 20 000 managers or supervisors who responded to surveys of more than 20 000 admitted to bullying at work.
Of those who admitted to bullying, about 20 per cent said they engaged in” severe” bullying while the others said they were involved in “low”-level bullying.  ,
The document, which stated that the Ministry of Health had about 250, 000 workers, even emphasised a significant lack of doctors, nurses and other medical staff, especially in rural locations, who face increased workloads leading to stress and burnout.
The Malaysian Medical Association ( MMA ) found that 30 to 40 % of doctors in the country have some form of bullying in a separate survey conducted last year of 728 doctors.
Additionally, according to the survey, victims are more likely than not to file a complaint out of fear or unsure how to proceed.  ,
In comparison, a 2019 study found almost 40 per cent of Malaysian employees had experienced workplace bullying.  ,
More than 5, 200 people from 47 organizations in Malaysia were surveyed during the study, which was titled” Workplace bullying and psychological distress of employees across socioeconomic strata: a cross-sectional study.” It was also published in the BMC Public Health journal.
According to the first report, a sizable sample of Malaysian employees recruited from various organizations were exposed to the prevalence of workplace bullying and its association with socioeconomic factors and psychological distress.  ,
The study did not identify the organizations or sectors to which they belonged, but instead found that being female, earning more money, and experiencing greater psychological distress were all key factors.