Sexual abuse is a very serious and sensitive subject, but it can happen to anyone at all. One of the most challenging types of sexual abuse to talk about happens when doctors and patients are inappropriately involved with each other. Many victims struggle to get justice because they feel ashamed or embarrassed that this happened at all. In this post, we will discuss what constitutes sexual abuse between doctor and patient relationships, why some people choose not to report it, and how you can protect yourself from such a situation happening in your own life.
Why Do Some People Not Report Abuse Involving Doctors?
Because of how sensitive this type of abuse is, many people decide not to report it for various reasons. This can be because they feel ashamed or embarrassed that this happened first and don’t want others to know about what has occurred. It may also occur if you are worried your loved ones will think badly of you for trusting someone supposed to be looking after you. Sometimes, it is because the person may not want to go against a medical professional they trust and worry about how that will affect their treatment in the future if they do report them.
Who Is at Risk?
Anyone can fall victim to sexual abuse involving doctors; however, vulnerable people or dependent on a particular type of medical treatment are more likely to be targeted. Several factors make someone more vulnerable to sexual abuse involving doctors. These include people who need physical assistance from others at a very high risk if they do not have anyone around to help them, people with illnesses, lack of understanding about what has happened, age differences between the alleged abuser and victim, disabilities or conditions such as dementia. People who need physical assistance from others may also be at risk if they do not have anyone around to help them.
What Can You Do to Protect Yourself?
Well, you can certainly try and avoid physical contact with doctors whenever possible. However, if this is not always possible (and it isn’t for many people), other ways may help keep yourself safe from sexual abuse involving doctors.
These include:
– Seeking medical treatment or advice when you are in a group of people.
– Having someone around when receiving treatment or advice from medical professionals to ensure they do not have any opportunity for misbehavior, such as family members.
– Being cautious of medical professionals who are overly touchy with you or others. – Not receiving treatment from someone in a private room without other people to act as witnesses, if possible.
– Having your own set of questions that you ask whenever dealing with doctors to know exactly what they will be doing during the appointment can help you feel less uncomfortable.
It’s OKAY for the examiner to:
1. Inform you if something feels wrong.
2. Use gloves.
3. Ask you to take off the portion of your body to be examined.
4. Before and throughout the exam, explain each bit to you precisely and in detail.
It’s NOT OKAY for the examiner to:
1. Refuse to respond to your inquiries or instruct you to be quiet.
2. Without gloves, examine your private parts.
3. Refuse to answer your questions.
4. Refuse to allow another person into the room.
5. Insist that you undress parts of your body that they are not examining.
6. Inquire about your sexual activities that make you really uncomfortable.
Conclusion
We hope this has helped you understand what sexual abuse involving doctors is, why people don’tdon’t always report it when something happens to them, and how to protect yourself.
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