Sexual harassment and nurse anesthetists.

Sexual harassment has emerged as an unpleasant but important subject for nurses. And, while most instances of sexual harassment take place in business settings or on college campuses, a number have occurred involving nurse anesthetists. Sexual harassment is prohibited under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and Title IX of the Education Amendment of 1972. However, there is a real difference of opinion about exactly what constitutes harassment. Clark describes it as ". . . harassment in which the faculty member covertly or overtly uses the power inherent in the status of a professor to threaten, coerce or intimidate a student to accept sexual advances or risk reprisal in terms of a grade, a recommendation or even a job."1 The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) defines the problem as "any unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature that affect employment decisions or create an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment." 2 Oshinsky defines sexual harassment as "not a sexual issue but as an issue of power."1 The National Advisory Council on Women's Educational Programs provides a general definition: "Academic sexual harassment is the use of authority to emphasize the sexuality or sexual identity of a student in a manner which prevents or impairs that student's full enjoyment of educational benefits, climate, or opportunities."' At least two basic elements emerge from the various definitions: (1) sexual harassment appears to be an imposition of power in an uneven situation, and (2) the sexual advances are unwelcome. Sexual harassment is a form of "academic malpractice" in school settings because it deprives students of the opportunity to study in a wholesome environment free from undue pressure. And while individual cases differ, more damage seems done to student nurse anesthetists than to CRNAs because of the uneven balance of power and the vulnerability of younger students. By way of contrast, it might be useful to define what sexual harassment is not. If two individuals are involved in an activity by complete mutual consent, strictly speaking, it is not sexual harassment. One individual recounted an instance when a physician, who had undergone two intensive hours in the operating room, asked a nurse for a back-rub to help him relax. If the nurse provides this extra service with complete willingness, it is not harassment.