Every day, two doctors suffer attacks in Spain, since last year 769 of these violent behaviors were recorded and reported to professional associations, the second highest record since the creation of the WTO Observatory against Aggressions with an uptick. mild in the emergency setting. This was revealed this Monday at the press conference organized by the General Council of Official Medical Associations (Cgcom) in which the results of the study of the Observatory against Aggression of the OMC (College Medical Organization) for 2023 were presented.
At the beginning of the event, the president of the Cgcom, Dr. Tomás Cobo, wanted to remember the victims of the 11M attacks, of which today we commemorate 20 years. “I want to honor all the victims and pay tribute to the State Security Forces and Corps and health professionals who gave their best in those days to save the lives of the victims of that attack.”
On the occasion of the celebration on March 12 of the European Day Against Attacks on Doctors and Health Professionals and coinciding with the 15th anniversary of the murder of Dr. Mª Eugenia Moreno, the WTO presented this report.
The person in charge of presenting these results was the Secretary General of the WTO and coordinator of the National Observatory of Aggressions, Dr. José María Rodríguez Vicente, who highlighted that these figures for 2023 “represent the second highest historical record of attacks on the medical profession, with 769 violent actions reported to medical associations, which highlights that every day two doctors are attacked in Spain.”
The WTO Observatory Against Aggressions recorded a total of 769 attacks in 2023, which puts the total number since 2011 at 7,261 attacks, the equivalent of all registered doctors in the province of Zaragoza or the Principality of Asturias. Of all the attacks suffered, 66% corresponded to women, a fact that consolidates the trend of recent years in which women suffered the majority of attacks.
In the area of Primary Care, attacks represented 43% of the cases. Behind were the hospitals where they fell seven points and were placed at 20%, ahead of hospital emergencies (10%) and Primary Care emergencies (10%), which rose slightly.
Regarding the different types of attacks suffered, in 51% of the cases threats and coercion occurred, mostly against women (65%). On the other hand, 11% of the total were attacks that ended in physical injuries, with 58% of women and 42% of men suffering them.
Of all the attacks received and reported, 13% ended in sick leave, three points more than last year. Regarding the 16% of “structural” attacks, that is, those that are not related to medical care or healthcare issues, the time spent receiving care stood out with 72%, followed by a malfunction of the center (28%).
Among the healthcare causes, once again the main cause of the attack was the discrepancy with the medical care received, which stood at 58%, five points more than the previous year. Personal disagreements (11.4%) and reports that do not meet expectations (12.7%) are also reasons for attacks.
Regarding the type of exercise in which the attacks occurred in 2023, the data were similar to those of previous years with a clear preponderance of public exercise (90%) compared to private exercise (10%). Of all the attacks, 94.2% occurred during work hours and environments.
In the distribution by age, the report highlighted that the largest increase by age range occurred among members between 36 and 45 years old (27.6%), five points more than in 2022.
Regarding the typology of the aggressors in 2023, the data showed that they are mainly scheduled patients (47%), followed by unscheduled patients (30%) and companions (22%). The average profile of the aggressor coincided with a male between 40-60 years old, although it was highlighted that women predominated in the age group under 40 years old.
Another fact that the 2023 report highlighted and that continued with the upward trend of previous years is that more and more professionals (110) requested legal protection from the WTO Foundation for Social Protection through the policy with A.M.A. Insurance.
