Workplace bullying, discrimination, harassment and quality of life among pediatric physiatrists

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to quantify quality of life (QOL), workplace bullying, discrimination and harassment among pediatric physiatrists.MethodsPediatric physiatrists (N = 389) were invited to participate in an online survey. Demographic data were collected as were the World Health Organization Quality of Life assessment (WHOQOL-BREF), the Negative Acts Questionnaire Revised (NAQ-22), and an adapted version of the Chronic Work Discrimination and Harassment Scale (aCWDHS). Means and standard deviations, one-sided t-tests, chi-squared and ANOVA tests were calculated with the p-value set a priori at 0.05.ResultsThe average WHOQOL-BREF score was 76.49/100. Seventeen percent of pediatric physiatrists met the threshold score of 33 for being bullied at least occasionally. The average score on the aCWDHS was 49.31. Disabled pediatric physiatrists reported statistically lower QOL scores (t = 2.356, p = .010), more workplace discrimination and harassment (t = 2.502, p = .010), and more workplace bullying (t = 2.139, p = .022). Low QOL scores were correlated with the scores on the aCWDHS and NAQ-22.ConclusionAddressing workplace bullying, discrimination, and harassment could potentially improve the QOL of pediatric physiatrists, especially those with disabilities who report a disproportionate amount of mistreatment.