Media contribution to violence against health workers in China: a content analysis study of 124 online media reports

Abstract

BackgroundViolence against health workers has been widely reported by the Chinese media. We aimed to identify the characteristics of the violent events as reported by the media and explore the possible role of media in such violence. MethodsWe used content analysis to study all available online newspaper reports of violence against health workers in China from Jan 1, 2013, to March 31, 2015. Duplicates of the same event were analysed in combination. Two researchers independently coded the data. Ethical approval was obtained from Zhejiang University Research Ethics Committee. Informed consent was not necessary because no patients were involved. FindingsWe found 124 incidents from 26 provinces. 73 occurred in tertiary-care facilities, 35 in secondary care, three in community facilities, and 13 in facilities such as private hospitals. 41 (33%) were reported from the emergency department, 22 (18%) in general medicine, 17 (14%) in general surgery, nine (7%) in obstetrics and gynaecology, eight (6%) in paediatrics, two (2%) in psychiatry, and 25 (20%) in other departments (eg, intensive-care unit, operating rooms, and radiology). 77 victims were doctors and 39 were nurses. In 116 (93·5%) cases the perpetrator was male, and 21 (17%) were reported to be drunk. In 31 (25%) cases the episode followed the death of a patient. The incidents included six (5%) murders and 12 (10%) serious injuries, mostly stabbing, including a doctor who had his throat cut. Two doctors were forced to kneel down before the body. 92 (74%) incidents involved relatives or friends of the patient, and 14 (11%) involved “Yi Nao gangs” who threatened and assaulted hospital personnel and damaged facilities to extort compensation. Two perpetrators were imprisoned, two sentenced to death, and one committed suicide, but the overwhelming majority were unpunished. Most reports attributed the violence to spontaneous justified anger resulting from poor care, unmet demands, or high costs. InterpretationThese reports represent extreme examples and are the tip of the iceberg. But the way in which they are reported and widely disseminated has bred fear in health professionals. Concerns that such reports of compensation, obtained with impunity, might contribute to copycat behaviours have also been expressed on social media. FundingNone.