ArticleBMC medical education2020
'If you can't make it, you're not tough enough to do medicine': a qualitative study of Sydney-based medical students' experiences of bullying and harassment in clinical settings.
Article in BMC medical education, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 42 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
42 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 85 citations in OpenAlex.
- Systematic review of academic bullying in medical settings: dynamics and consequences.BMJ open · 2021Pooled it
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- Assessing changes in academic motivation across medical training stages: a longitudinal study in Malaysia.Annals of medicine · 2026Article
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- Bullying and sexual harassment of medical and nursing students, in relation to stress, burnout and intention to dropout.International journal of medical education · 2026Article
- Psychological adjustment and growth of graduate nursing students under the dual stress of research and practicum: a qualitative study.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Article
- How widespread is bullying in university-affiliated hospitals in Isfahan? a cross-sectional study from Iran.Journal of medical ethics and history of medicine · 2026Article
- Training under the threat in South Africa: bullying of medical students by clinicians-a scoping review protocol.BMJ public health · 2026Article
- Prevalence and determinants of academic bullying among medical and dental students in Jordan.Frontiers in health services · 2026Article
- Cultural influences on Asian health profession trainees seeking and receiving feedback: a scoping review.BMC medical education · 2025Article
- Ignorance Is Not Bliss: A Systematic Review on the Impact of Ignoring UK Medical Students During Clinical Placements.Cureus · 2025Review
- Using Hofstede's framework to explore surgical cultures and their impact on female surgeons.Medical education · 2025Article
- 'Never Going to be a Cut Above [the Rest].' Medical Students' Perceptions of How Their Personal Protected Characteristics Impacted Surgical Learning.Medical science educator · 2025Article
- Drawing It Out: A Descriptive Study on How Medical Students Use Graphic Medicine to Depict Their Transition to Third Year.Medical science educator · 2025Article
- Factors influencing quality of professional life and perceived bullying among medical residents in Iran.BMC medical education · 2025Article
- A qualitative study of how clinicians reach agreement in perioperative pathway development: the Consensus Model for Standardising Healthcare.Implementation science communications · 2025Article
- The Hidden Curriculum in Which Medical Students Learn to Understand and Manage Unprofessional Behaviour: A Qualitative Interview Study.Medical science educator · 2025Article
- Bullying and Incivility Experiences of Undergraduate Orthoptic Students on Clinical Placement.The British and Irish orthoptic journal · 2025Article
- Empowering bystanders: a psychological and institutional model for intervention in academic bullying.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Article
- Bedside teaching - insights into the medical student experience and likely impact on future role as clinical teacher.BMC medical education · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundMedia exposés and academic literature reveal high rates of bullying and harassment of medical students, most commonly by consultant physicians and/or surgeons. Recent reports reveal the medical profession to be characterised by hierarchy, with verbal abuse a 'rite of passage', as well as sexist and racist behaviours.
methodsSemi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with ten current or recently graduated medical students from Sydney-based medical schools. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and thematically analysed.
resultsHierarchy, and a culture of self-sacrifice, resilience and deference, were identified as problematic elements of the medical profession. In the minds of participants, these factors created barriers to reporting mistreatment, as participants felt reporting led to being labelled a 'troublemaker', affecting career progression. Additionally, participants stated that avenues of recourse were unclear and did not guarantee confidentiality or desired outcomes.
conclusionsMistreatment is continuing in clinical teaching and has negative consequences on medical students' mental health and learning. Structural change is needed to combat institutionalised mistreatment to ensure the wellbeing of future doctors and high quality patient care.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.