Violence against healthcare workers increasing

University of Queensland (UQ) research shows violence against healthcare workers is increasing in frequency and severity, not only in Australia but worldwide.

The study, which was headed up by Dr Conor O’Brien, looked at 3000 studies and examined the "causes, prevalence and impacts of violence against healthcare workers between 2016 and 2023." The violence ranged from verbal and emotional abuse to physical injury and death.

Dr O'Brien said few attempts at workplace violence prevention have shown lasting effects, highlighting the complexity of understanding and mitigating the issue.

“Some incidents resulted in fatalities, with more than 370 healthcare workers killed in the past seven years, including 161 medics in conflict zones,” he said.

“There is evidence female workers were at greater risk of non-physical violence and sexual harassment, while male workers were at higher risk of physical violence.

“Acts of violence included verbal threats or intimidation and those most at risk were in emergency departments, those on nightshifts, and younger less experienced staff.”

Australia is one country that has addressed the issue with specific workplace health and safety legislation, yet, despite ongoing interventions, evidence shows the issue is becoming more prevalent.

“These measures range from new criminal offences for perpetrators to legislative obligations on management to protect staff,” Dr O'Brien said.

“But although important, they haven’t led to reductions in violent incidents which highlights the complexity of the problem.”

The study identified a number of factors that contributed to the increase including "shortage of staff or resources, long wait times, poor communication and insufficient security and organisational support." Other factors included patients presenting with intoxication or disease-related cognitive impairment

Professor Andre van Zundert from UQ’s Faculty of Medicine explained that the last five years have been particularly testing for healthcare workers globally.

“Patient expectations of healthcare systems also appear to have increased,” he said.

“Tensions between the public and healthcare workers escalated during the Covid-19 pandemic.”

The impact of workplace violence includes poorer mental and physical health for healthcare workers, and there is also evidence that it negatively impacted patient care and increased costs for health systems.

A key factor for the development of prevention strategies is accurate and up-to-date data. One way to achieve this is with active participation from healthcare workers themselves.

Researchers suggest three ways to improve the rate of reporting:

• Common definitions of reportable incidents
• Easy and efficient reporting processes
• Managerial actions that make staff feel safe and empowered

The review also highlights the urgent need for action by governments, healthcare systems and staff to contribute to effective workplace violence prevention and mitigation strategies.

Read the full study here.

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