A Multispecialty Perspective on Physician Responsibility to Sexual Assault Survivors

As physicians who represent differing specialties of obstetrics and gynecology, psychiatry, and pediatrics, we have repeatedly experienced stories of sexual assault in the context of our various patient encounters. Although our individual specialties give detailed guidelines for physicians and cover the medical, legal, and mental health aspects, we propose that all physicians should use another category called social responsibility. The mainstay of our social responsibility is to provide the victim with the support and resources to overcome this trauma. We outline the tenets of social responsibility as prevention, trust, reassurance, and resource allocation. We hope to illustrate the importance of advocating for uniform adoption of a trauma-informed care approach to sexual assault survivors.