The Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) International is urging survivors of sexual abuse by psychiatrists, psychologists, and psychiatric hospital staff to report incidents confidentially via an online reporting form. This call follows a disturbing increase in media reports and convictions involving patient sexual abuse by mental health professionals. CCHR is advocating for uniform state laws that impose stronger criminal penalties, mandatory reporting, and full accountability for perpetrators.
CCHR, established in 1969, helped secure some of the first state laws in California and Colorado that made sexual contact between therapists and patients a criminal offense. Today, 33 U.S. states and Washington, D.C., have such criminal statutes, with similar laws in Australia, Germany, Israel, and Sweden. However, a study addressing U.S. laws found that only five states have addressed reporting sexual relationships between physicians and patients. Of these, only Texas mandates reporting even without the patient's consent. Another 18 states permit reporting under broader laws, but standards vary widely with vague terms like "reasonable belief."
A survey of psychiatrists revealed that over one-third knew of a colleague who had been sexually involved with patients, yet only 8% reported it, though 56% favored mandatory reporting. CCHR's public database shows that nearly a third of criminal convictions against mental health personnel involve sexual abuse. Victims are frequently drugged by the abusing therapist, a factor CCHR says statutes must address. A 2020 report on sexual assault in psychiatric settings found that most states do not mandate physicians to report exploitative colleagues.
A 2026 BMJ Open scoping review cited a study in which 3%–21% of psychiatric hospital patients reported abuse by healthcare professionals. Surveys from the 1970s and 1980s found that approximately 7% of psychiatrists admitted to sexual misconduct, with over one-third involved with more than one patient. A 2001 national survey found that one in 20 abused clients was a minor, with an average age of 7 for girls and 12 for boys. Therapists who engage in sexual contact are often repeat offenders; surveys show over 50% of male therapists who admitted such involvement reported multiple patients, and a Canadian study put the repeat offender rate at 80%.
CCHR criticizes the mental health field for downplaying the offense as a mere "boundary violation." Jan Eastgate, President of CCHR International, stated: "Mental health facilities can operate with little supervision, creating a breeding ground for abusive acts to go undetected for years. If mental health professionals sexually assault their patients, they betray a position of trust. This is not a 'professional boundary violation'—it is sexual battery." She added that describing such abuse as "crossing a boundary" is an insult to victims.
A 2023 study found that 5% to 45% of mental health inpatients experience sexual violence during admission, with underreporting due to stigma and fear. CCHR has documented systemic sexual abuse in for-profit psychiatric hospitals, including 21 incidents in one chain, leading to two staff convictions totaling 35 years in prison and two facility closures.
CCHR calls for immediate reforms, including uniform criminal laws making sexual contact between therapists and patients a felony, revocation of licenses and government contracts for facilities where staff abuse patients, and mandatory criminal accountability. CCHR urges victims and witnesses to come forward via its online reporting form at https://www.cchrint.org/patient-abuse-report/.
