Violence in a general hospital: comparison of assailant and other assault‐related factors on accident and emergency and inpatient wards

Abstract

Objective: This study sought to compare the characteristics of aggressive incidents occurring on inpatient (medical and surgical) wards with those occurring in the accident and emergency department in terms of assailant, employee and other factors. Method: A prospective interview‐based survey design was adopted. Forty‐eight assaulted staff were interviewed about 69 incidents within 7 days on average of the incident occurring. The presence or absence of various assailant, employee, situation, interaction and outcome factors derived from the UK Health Services Advisory Committee's model was compared between the two settings. Results: Inpatient ward incidents were significantly more likely to have the following characteristics: female perpetrator, perpetrator aged over 70 years, daytime occurrence in a restricted area, resolved by support from other health care staff. Conclusion: Aggression frequently occurs on inpatient (medical and surgical) wards of a general hospital. Aggression management training for staff working in both accident and emergency and inpatient settings should be cognisant of the similarities and differences within general health care specialisms.

Assessment of the Relationship between Violence and Burnout among Physicians Working in Emergency Departments, Turkey

“…The consequences are emotions like anger or anxiety extending to psychological disorders like burnout. [12,[27][28][29][30][31] Gascón et al [30] have found that there is a statistically significant association between verbal violence and anxiety and symptoms of PostTraumatic Stress Syndrome. In their report, both physical and non-physical violence has had an identical negative impact in terms of burnout, exhaustion and conflicts of values in health care workers, which are similar to our study.…”

The correlates of aggression in people with acquired brain injury: A preliminary retrospective study

“…Despite this, there has been limited research in hospital wards that care for people with these conditions, as much research has focused on aggression in psychiatric and emergency wards and more recently in general medical wards [9]. This is surprising, given that strong links between brain injuries and aggressive behaviours have been found [7][8][9].…”

“…Past research has recognized that individuals with ABI or cognitive impairment were significantly more likely to be aggressive towards hospital staff than those without these conditions [7][8][9][10][11]. Despite this, there has been limited research in hospital wards that care for people with these conditions, as much research has focused on aggression in psychiatric and emergency wards and more recently in general medical wards [9].…”

Percentage prevalence of patient and visitor violence against staff in high-risk UK medical wards

“…It affects negatively the psychological and physical well-being of healthcare staff as well as having a negative impact on job motivation and, more importantly, the ability to provide high-quality care. [13][14][15] Workplace violence also has a negative economic impact on organisations in terms of work days lost and sickness absence. The financial losses ensued by healthcare systems through PVV are well documented in several studies.…”