THE HEALTH Ministry yesterday confirmed it was investigating sexual harassment claims against one of Nicosia general hospital’s male nurses.
The claim was brought by one of the male nurse’s subordinates, who reported the incidents to the Ombudswoman. In turn, the Ombudswoman prepared a report and handed it over to the Ministry, a senior Ministry official said.
Commenting on the reports first brought to light by Phileleftheros, Health Ministry permanent secretary Antis Tryfonides yesterday told reporters the Ministry was preparing to discuss the matter in order to assess to what extent a disciplinary investigation was necessary.
Tryfonides said: “The woman in question initially made a general sexual harassment claim without giving any specific details as to who, when and where the alleged events took place. She was told to make her claims more specific because investigating a general claim is very difficult.”
According to the permanent secretary, the plaintiff had responded with a more detailed account of her version of events two or three days ago.
“We are planning to sit down and discuss the matter today to decide whether a disciplinary investigation will be launched and what measures should be taken,” he said.
Meanwhile Health Minister Dina Akkelidou said sexual harassment was “an abominable act”, which was “entirely condemnable”.
She said: “It is an act that belittles our respect for other people and will be investigated.”
According to Phileleftheros, the male nurse, who is married to another hospital employee, is said to have sexually harassed three or four different hospital nurses in the past, but they were too afraid to come forward. There were even claims in the past that some female nurses were transferred to different departments or to the Makarios hospital in order to escape their superior, the paper claimed.
Following the woman’s complaint to the Health Ministry, the suspect has allegedly tried to blackmail other nurses that their jobs would be jeopardised if they testified against him. The same man has allegedly claimed to have strong connections and that his position cannot be compromised, the paper claimed.
