Epidemiological characteristics and behaviors of online broadcast suicidality in China: implications for targeted prevention strategies.

Objectives: Suicide is a global health concern, exacerbated by stigma around mental illnesses. Online platforms like Twitter and Sina Weibo have seen a rise in "online broadcast suicide," where individuals share suicidal thoughts and actions. However, there is limited understanding of the epidemiological characteristics, particularly in China. This study aims to analyze the demographics and behaviors of individuals engaging in online broadcast suicide in China to inform targeted prevention strategies. Methods: A total of 525 incidents were identified through systematic retrieval of relevant news reports from online sources. Subsequently, a content analysis was performed on these reports to extract detailed information on the characteristics of each individual incident. Results: Among the incidents analyzed, the male-to-female ratio was 1:1.6, with an average age of 23.1 ± 5.9 years. Approximately 71.9% took place in Southern China. Unemployment was reported in 15.0% of incidents. Relationship breakup (62.3%) was cited as the leading cause of suicide. Wrist cutting (58.2%) emerged as the predominant suicide method, and home (36.2%) was the most common location for these tragic events. Instant messaging apps were the primary platforms (54.7%) for conveying suicidal thoughts and actions. Additionally, among the 525 incidents examined, 12.0% disclosed having a mental disorder, and 7.6% had a history of prior suicide attempts. Significant variations were observed across age, gender, region, and occupation categories. Conclusion: This study emphasizes the importance of developing suicide prevention programs for internet users. Besides, interventions should be customized to meet the specific needs of various populations.

Factors associated with workplace violence against Chinese healthcare workers: an online cross-sectional survey.

Objectives: Workplace violence (WPV) against healthcare workers (HCWs) has reached significant levels globally, impeding the quality and accessibility of healthcare systems. However, there is limited available knowledge regarding the determinants linked with WPV among HCWs and the discrepancies observed across various levels of hospitals in China. The objective of the present research was to investigate the factors linked to WPV and job satisfaction among HCWs in China. Methods: A self-developed questionnaire based on WeChat was employed to collect data. The questionnaire consisted of demographic information as well as occupational factors. To measure WPV, the Chinese version of the Workplace Violence Scale was utilized. Career satisfaction was assessed through two questions regarding career choices. The collected data was analyzed using descriptive analyses, chi-square tests, and multivariate logistic regressions. Results: A total of 3,781 valid questionnaires (1,029 doctors and 2,752 nurses) were collected. Among all participants, 2,201 (58.2%) reported experiencing at least one form of WPV in the past year, with emotional abuse being the most frequent occurrence (49.7%), followed by threats (27.9%). The multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed several risk factors associated with WPV, including male gender, shift work, senior professional title, bachelor's degree education, employment in secondary-level hospitals, and working over 50 h per week (p < 0.05). Career satisfaction among HCWs who experienced high levels of WPV was low, with only 11.2% remaining confident in their profession, and a mere 2.0% supporting their children pursuing careers in healthcare. Conclusion: WPV poses a significant challenge within the Chinese healthcare system. Efforts should be made to address the identified risk factors and promote a safe and satisfying working environment for HCWs.

Workplace violence against Chinese health professionals 2013-2021: A study of national criminal judgment documents.

Objectives: Patient-initiated hospital violence is a global problem which threatens the safety of health professionals and is indicative of doctor-patient tensions, impeding health system quality and access. The current study aimed to improve the understanding of medical workplace violence (WPV) in China, using authoritative and nationally representative judgment records, and to approach violence prevention strategies. Methods: All litigation records relating to violence against health professionals between 2013 and 2021 were extracted from the China Judgment Online System. Basic case information, victim characteristics, perpetrator characteristics and the nature of the violence were collated. The relationship between different treatment outcomes and violence was also explored. Results: Numbers of cases of hospital violence gradually increased from 2013 to a peak in 2016 before gradually decreasing in the following years. The most common perpetrators were patients' relatives (58.2%), followed by patients themselves (38.2%). Only 9 perpetrators had a confirmed history of mental illness and only two were intoxicated with alcohol. More than half of the cases (52.5%) occurred in rural areas and this percentage is even greater for primary health care institutions (71.4%) and secondary hospitals (73.5%). On a departmental level, the highest incidence of medical WPV was found in the emergency (18.9%), pediatrics (13.2%) and obstetrics (11.5%) departments. Violent behaviors, such as stalking, mass occupation of the ward and sharp instrument injury were significantly related to cases not involving patient death (p < 0.05). Disruptive behavior, such as hanging banners, blocking hospital passages, placing flower wreaths and burning paper money were significantly correlated with cases involving patient death (p < 0.01). The interval between a patient's death and the ensuing violence was short, happening on the same day in 54.8% of cases. Conclusions: A comprehensive overview of medical WPV in China is presented and may have utility for the formulation of prevention strategies.

Workplace violence against doctors in China: A case analysis of the Civil Aviation General Hospital incident.

Background: Violence against health professionals is a global public health problem. In 2019, a doctor was killed in Civil Aviation General Hospital (CAGH), which triggered national discussion about hospital violence. Sina Weibo, the Chinese version of Twitter, played an important role in this public discussion. The CAGH incident provides us with an opportunity to explore how social media was used in the discussion on violence against doctors. Methods: Using the built-in search engine of Sina Weibo, a data set containing 542 Chinese micro-blogs was established. Three keywords: Civil Aviation General Hospital, doctor, and knife were used to search for related posts between December 24th, 2019 and January 19th, 2020. We made a content analysis of the posts to investigate: Weibo users' demographics, views about the incident of CAGH, and measures to prevent hospital violence. Results: Overall, 89.3% of the posts were sent by individual Weibo users, and 10.7% by organizations. Among the individual users, doctors accounted for 27.4%, but only 1.0% came from the legal profession. In addition, 86.7% of the micro-blogs expressed sympathy for the attacked doctor, and 23.1% of the micro-blogs thought that the imperfect medical system was the main cause of the accident. Nearly half of the posts described their disappointment with the government and the society, and 58.6% of medical staff users expressed regret for engaging in medical work. Only 14.2% of micro-blogs put forward some constructive strategies to prevent hospital violence. Conclusion: Weibo users played an important role in spreading and discussing the CAGH incident. However, constructive measures to protect doctors were rarely mentioned, and legal opinions were not reflected in time. Hospital violence has caused public dissatisfaction with the government and weakened the professional confidence of medical staff. Occupational health and public health stakeholders must take effective measures to solve workplace violence against doctors.

Cultivation of compound ability of postgraduates with medical professional degree: the importance of double tutor system.

As we all know, medical postgraduate education is very important for training high-quality clinicians, and can have a long-term impact on the promotion of the global health service system. In recent years, following the example of developed countries in Europe and America, the Chinese government has reformed the training mode of medical postgraduates and implemented the double tutor system. Although this system will bring many positive effects in theory, the difficulties encountered in implementing this system are real and need the joint efforts of schools, tutors and students to solve them. This article closely follows the background of the current era, compares the differences between Chinese and foreign graduate training modes, and emphatically discusses the significance and problems of the double tutor system in the postgraduate education reform in China.