Sexual assaults in the NHS: Specialist lawyer assists investigation
Abuse lawyer Elizabeth Duncan has assisted with an investigation carried out by the British medical Journal (BMJ) and the Guardian newspaper into sexual assaults in the NHS.
The authors of the report (which you can read here) call for immediate action to be taken to be taken to protect NHS staff and patients after NHS trusts recorded more than 35,000 cases of rape, sexual assault, harassment, stalking, and abusive remarks between 2017 and 2022.
Freedom of information data reveals that NHS staff are most at threat, suffering abuse from patients, visitors and other staff members.
Elizabeth, who heads up Slee Blackwell’s specialist abuse team, was particularly critical of the lack of dedicated policies and training within the NHS, with most trusts not having a sexual safety policy. This means that staff, patients, and visitors are not adequately safeguarded from harm and the extent of the problem goes under reported. She told the BMJ investigators:
“This is absolutely shocking and I think shows a terrifying naivety on the part of those trusts, the huge majority, without a specific policy. How they can possibly hope to keep patients and staff safe in the absence of policy and guidance is beyond me.”
The investigators found that between 2017-2022, there was a total of 11,880 alleged sexual crimes on NHS premises that were reported to 37 police forces. This includes 5,164 sexual assaults and at least 3,084 rapes.But because the reporting systems operated by NHS trusts are so inadequate, commentators believe that the true picture could be even worse.
Children are particularly vulnerable, with the police recording 180 cases of children under 16 being raped on NHS premises between 2017 and 2022. In addition there were another 186 reports of children being sexually assaulted and 127 reports of other sexual crimes involving minors.
Liberal Democrat health spokesperson Daisy Cooper who has described the revelations about sexual assaults in the NHS as “sickening” has demanded an independent public inquiry to uncover the full extent of the scandal.
The investigators believe that NHS trusts need to be guided by NHS-wide policies on how to deal with allegations of sexual assault in the NHS.
If you have been the victim of sexual assault in the NHS and would like to know what your legal position is then Elizabeth and her team operate a free legal helpline that you can contact by calling 0333 888 0404 or sending an email to [email protected].
