Only 41 out of 192 hospitals responded to the Freedom of Information request
Scottish health boards revealed the scale of the scandal in the hospitals
New figures have revealed the “shocking” scale of alleged sexual assaults in Scottish hospitals as campaigners warn it is just the “tip of the iceberg.
The data revealed that the alleged crimes included five rapes, 57 sexual assaults, 31 indecent exposures, 19 indecent communication offences, 22 incidents of coercion and one attempted rape.
The organisation also found that there was a smaller number of reports for voyeurism, lewd and libidinous behaviour, and the use of child pornography. It revealed that 43 happened on wards with 76 charges being brought by the Police following the reports of the crimes.
More than half of all incidents took place on psychiatric facilities.
WRNS revealed last year that between 2019 and 2024 Police Scotland received nearly 300 reports of alleged sex crimes, including 12 rapes, across 57 hospital sites.
Scottish Conservative equalities spokesman Tess White, right, said: “People are at their most vulnerable when in a hospital bed.“The SNP are failing to tackle this issue because they’re putting ideology before patient safety.”
The Scottish Government said “any form of abuse of this nature is completely abhorrent” and it “expects NHS health boards to work closely with Police Scotland, and to uphold their legal duties as employers in keeping staff, patients and visitors safe”.
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said it takes all reports of sexual assault “extremely seriously”, while NHS Fife said such incidents were “very rare”. NHS Ayrshire and Arran said it had “appropriate policies and procedures in place”.
Top picture: One of the incidents was reported to have taken place on a hospital ward.