In the pediatrics department of Harran University Hospital, a patient’s father was not satisfied with the answer the doctor provided about his son’s fever. He struck the doctor’s head twice with a stone. The doctor collapsed and was taken to intensive care. This happened in mid-July in the southeastern town of Sanliurfa in Turkey. The assailant told police he does not regret what he did. This is only one of 68,375 cases of verbal and physical abuse of medical personnel in the last six years. According to data from the Turkish Health Ministry, every hour a health staff member is attacked. Verbal abuse is about three times more common than physical.

From early October through the end of November, Al-Monitor conducted phone interviews with over 100 health care employees from three cities (Izmir, Istanbul and Ankara) in Turkey. All medical staff (doctors, dentists, hospital administrators, nurses, pharmacists and interns) told Al-Monitor they believe the actual numbers are much higher than those reported. All of those interviewed have experienced verbal abuse, and 65% of them said the verbal abuse (insults, threats, offensive language) happens on a daily basis. They all concurred that since the 2016 coup attempt, incidents of handguns being brandished at emergency rooms and surgeries have increased. The problem is not a recent one in Turkey, but it has been gradually becoming worse. From 2012 to 2017, violence toward medical staff has increased 168%.

In 2012, AKP government created a system called “White Code” through which health care staff can report attacks to be documented. The data gathered shows the attackers are 70% male, 50% relatives of the patient and 36% the patients themselves.

The reasons for the rise in such attacks over the last decade include a lack of deterrence. For example, 2017 White Code data showed 13,409 incidents were reported. From those reported cases, 57% were prosecuted. So far only 37 have been sentenced to prison and 28 have faced financial penalties. Some of the cases are still under investigation.