Doctor receptionists under attack by aggressive patients, study finds

Panic rooms, duress alarms and personal safety training have been introduced into Queensland medical clinics due to receptionists being the target of vile abuse.

RACGP chief Dr Bruce Willett. Picture: Tara Croser

Panic rooms, duress alarms and personal safety training have been introduced into Queensland medical clinics due to receptionists being the target of verbal and physical abuse by aggressive patients.

The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners Queensland chief has revealed to The Courier-Mail that a flood of receptionists has left their jobs due to feeling unsafe.

Some patients lose their cool over appointment waits and the lack of bulk billing while others have drug problems or mental health issues.

This comes as a new Queensland study shows that workplace abuse has long lasting impact on the workers.

“It is a terrible indictment on society when people can’t come to work and feel safe. The level of problems with angry patients was extraordinary during Covid. Staff are trained on how to try to diffuse a volatile situation and how to protect themselves from harm,” Dr Bruce Willett from the RACGP said.

The new research from the University of Queensland has found verbal and physical abuse of medical receptionists by patients is rife and causing lasting harm.

Dr Fiona Willer from UQ’s Centre for Community Health and Wellbeing led a review of 20 studies across five countries, analysing aggression faced by receptionists in medical clinics and doctor surgeries.

“Our findings show receptionists are frequently subjected to verbal abuse from patients such as shouting, swearing, accusatory language and racist and sexist insults,” Dr Willer said.

“They also face armed and unarmed physical violence,” she said.

The research, which is published in Family Medicine and Community Health, found the behaviour severely affected the receptionists’ health and wellbeing.

“They reported workplace stress, absenteeism, burnout, lasting psychological trauma and even physical harm,” Dr Willer said.

“Only a small proportion received professional counselling and unfortunately co-ordinated support for reception staff was generally lacking.”

Researcher Dr David Chua said medical receptionists are on the frontline and often in difficult situations.

“They are managing patients in a variety of emotional states and can become the target of their frustrations and aggression, often for things that are entirely out of their control,” Dr Chua said.

The research found some strategies appeared to help reduce aggressive patient behaviour, including staff training and reducing points of frustration for patients, like simplifying appointment scheduling. But other methods were ineffective in deterring aggression, such as ‘zero tolerance’ campaigns and visible safety measures like clear acrylic barriers and lockable doors at reception areas.