The world over, rape has always been associated with women. The burden of stigma is always on the women when it comes to rape, but men are as vulnerable in this crime as women.
Even when it comes to emergency facilities, hospitals do not provide any for men who are victims of rape. It may, perhaps, be because male rape cases are hardly accepted or registered.
But now for the first time, a hospital in Stockholm, Sweden, is going to open an emergency clinic for male rape victims.
The South General Hospital already has a walk-in centre which provides urgent care for women who have been raped or sexually assaulted.
The hospital has recently announced that it would be admitting men and boys from the month of October.
According to a Swedish media report, around 370 cases of sexual assault on men or boys were reported in Sweden last year.
“The general perception is that men cannot be raped,” Lotti Helstrom told Radio Sweden, reported BBC .
She said the subject of male rape was still ‘extremely taboo’ but that it was much more common than most people realised.
She also added that it was important for men to have equal access to emergency care. The hospital already runs a 24-hour emergency service for female rape victims, providing access to doctors, midwives, nurses, psychologists and social workers.
This is a landmark decision taken by the Swedish hospital which must inspire other hospitals to open emergency facilities for men rape victims across the world.
