One in three young doctors has been bullied or undermined while training, however a new campaign has been launched to tackle this issue.

According to the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO), which is leading the campaign, one-third of trainee doctors have been bullied or undermined, while half have witnessed someone else being bullied.

Not surprisingly, trainees who were bullied were much more likely to say they were leaving medical practice compared to those who were not bullied.

As part of this campaign, a new ‘Respect Charter' has been signed by the IMO, the Irish Postgraduate Training Forum and the HSE.

"We are delighted that the Postgraduate Training Forum and the HSE have committed to the principles of the charter in working with us and other stakeholders to address what is a serious issue for the profession. Being subjected to unacceptable behaviour can lead to problems such as stress, anxiety and erosion of self-esteem," commented IMO president, Dr John Duddy.

He emphasised that it is essential that trainees get to work in a ‘respectful and safe environment that allows them to achieve their full potential as doctors'.

"This Respect Charter clearly demonstrates that we all recognise there is a problem and working together we are determined to change the culture and improve the experience of our trainees. There are inherent pressures and stresses in training to be a doctor, but unacceptable behaviour need not be one of them," Dr Duddy added.

The charter suggests a number of ways to deal with these unacceptable behaviours, including creating environments which foster respect, working together to identify the types of bullying doctors are subjected to, and coming up with strategies to reduce barriers to reporting.