@article{ref1,
title="Inappropriate patient sexual behavior in the dental practice setting: experiences of dental hygienists",
journal="Journal of dental hygiene",
year="2021",
author="Patel, Priya and Smallidge, Dianne L. and Boyd, Linda D. and Vineyard, Jared",
volume="95",
number="4",
pages="14-22",
abstract="PURPOSE: Workplace violence (WPV) and inappropriate patient sexual behavior (IPSB) have become increasingly prevalent in the United States. Previous research has shown health care professionals are at a 16-times higher risk of experiencing WPV and IPSB than other occupations, however, there is a lack of research in the field of dental hygiene. The purpose of the study was to examine the experiences of dental hygienists with IPSB in the workplace.<br><br>METHODS: A cross-sectional survey research design was used with a purposive sample of clinical dental hygienists recruited through social media sites (n=471). The validated survey was comprised of demographic and IPSB-related questions, with one open-ended question to expand on experiences with IPSB. Descriptive statistics, Pearson's correlation, t-tests and multiple regression analysis were used to analyze the data.<br><br>RESULTS: The survey completion rate was 49% (n=232). Career occurrence of IPSB was 85.8% and occurrence within the last 12-month period was 63.5% among the respondents. Participants who experienced all three categories of IPSB severity had the lowest median number of years in clinical practice (Md.=5.0) as compared to those who reported two categories (Md.=7) and those with only one category (Md.=10), p=0.01. Themes from the open-ended questions included types of patient perpetrating IPSB; type of IPSB behavior; and approaches to management of the IPSB.<br><br>CONCLUSION: The high prevalence of IPSB events among dental hygienists in this study warrants increased practitioner education, improved workplace policy and support for management of IPSB.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="1043-254X",
doi="",
url="http://dx.doi.org/"
}