Stressful Incidents of Physical Violence Against Emergency Nurses
Physical violence in the ED remains a problem for emergency nurses during the routine performance of nursing practice. Efforts to prevent violence and promote workplace safety need to focus on work designs allowing for the quick egress of employees away from violent patients and visitors; establish and consistently enforce policies aimed at preventing workplace violence, and maintain positive working relationships with security officers. While patients with mental health or substance use complaints were deemed as the most stressful encounters of physical violence, they are not the only patients acting out violently that lead to nursing stress. Therefore, risk reduction efforts should target all patients and visitors, and not be restrictive to any sub-population. Future research needs to quantitatively measure the frequency and severity of consequences and effects to the worker, workplace, and patient care for those physically violent events deemed as most distressful.
Conclusion
Physical violence in the ED remains a problem for emergency nurses during the routine performance of nursing practice. Efforts to prevent violence and promote workplace safety need to focus on work designs allowing for the quick egress of employees away from violent patients and visitors; establish and consistently enforce policies aimed at preventing workplace violence, and maintain positive working relationships with security officers. While patients with mental health or substance use complaints were deemed as the most stressful encounters of physical violence, they are not the only patients acting out violently that lead to nursing stress. Therefore, risk reduction efforts should target all patients and visitors, and not be restrictive to any sub-population. Future research needs to quantitatively measure the frequency and severity of consequences and effects to the worker, workplace, and patient care for those physically violent events deemed as most distressful.