Dataset Information

Workplace violence against healthcare workers in Pakistan; call for action, if not now, then when? A systematic review.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Workplace violence (WPV) is a global problem that affects healthcare workers' physical and mental health and impairs work performance. Pakistan's healthcare system is not immune to WPV, which the World Health Organization recognises as an occupational hazard.

Objectives

The primary objective of this systematic review is to determine the prevalence of physical, verbal, or other forms of WPV in healthcare workers in Pakistan. Secondary objectives include identifying the associated risk factors and perpetrators of WPV.

Methods

A systematic review of six electronic databases was conducted through August 2022. Studies were included if they met the following criteria: 1) healthcare workers (HCWs), including physicians, nurses, and paramedic staff working in the private or public sector of Pakistan; 2) exposure to physical, verbal, or any type of violence. Data were extracted and analysed for the prevalence of WPV, types of violence, associated risk factors, and perpetrators of violence.

Results

Twenty-four studies including 16,070 HCWs were included in this review. Verbal violence was the most common form of violence levied, with its highest prevalence (100%) reported in Islamabad and lowest verbal violence prevalence (25%) in Karachi. Verbal abuse was preponderant against female HCWs, while physical abuse was directed more towards males. The most common perpetrators were patient attendants, followed by the patients.

Conclusion

Our review determines a 25-100% prevalence of WPV against HCWs in Pakistani medical setups. This occupational hazard needs the attention of relevant authorities in the country to put protective enforcement policies in place. Large-scale surveys should be conducted to better gauge the current plight of HCWs in the nation.

SUBMITTER: Rehan ST

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10653705 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Workplace violence against healthcare workers in Pakistan; call for action, if not now, then when? A systematic review.

Rehan Syeda Tayyaba ST Shan Mishal M Shuja Syed Hasan SH Khan Zayeema Z Hussain Hassan Ul HU Ochani Rohan Kumar RK Shaikh Asim A Ratnani Iqbal I Nashwan Abdulqadir J AJ Surani Salim S

Global health action 20231108 1

<h4>Background</h4>Workplace violence (WPV) is a global problem that affects healthcare workers' physical and mental health and impairs work performance. Pakistan's healthcare system is not immune to WPV, which the World Health Organization recognises as an occupational hazard.<h4>Objectives</h4>The primary objective of this systematic review is to determine the prevalence of physical, verbal, or other forms of WPV in healthcare workers in Pakistan. Secondary objectives include identifying the a ...[more]

PMID: 37938187

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Project description:BackgroundWorkplace violence (WPV) is highly prevalent in the health sector and remains a major occupational issue causing significant harm, ranging from bodily and psychological harm to death. Female healthcare workers (HCWs) are at high risk of WPV.ObjectivesIdentify risk factors of WPV among different professional categories of female HCWs.Data sourcesPubMed, EMBASE and Web of Science, along with their references lists January 2010 and March 2022.Eligibility criteriaEnglish language observational studies focusing on WPV among HCWs evaluating the risk factors, impacts and consequences of WPV in female HCWs.MethodRisk of bias was assessed for all studies by Joanna Briggs Institute critical appraisal checklists. We estimated the pooled prevalence of WPV and the associated 95% CI using a random-effects meta-analysis model. We then described the associated factors and effects of WPV.Results28 reviewed studies (24 quantitative, 4 qualitative and 1 mixed-method) from 20 countries were selected. From the available results of 16 studies, the pooled prevalence of WPV was estimated at 45.0% (95% CI 32% to 58%). Types of violence included verbal abuse, verbal threats, physical assaults, sexual harassment, mobbing, bullying and discrimination. Perpetrators were patients, patients' relatives, colleagues and supervisors. Nurses were the most studied HCWs category. WPV was found to affect both mental and physical health. Age, marital status, lower occupational position, substance abuse, shorter work experience and low support at work were the main socio-demographic and organisational factors associated with higher risk of WPV.ConclusionWPV prevalence is high among female HCWs, warranting a multilevel intervention approach to address and mitigate its impact. This approach should include targeted policies and individual-level strategies to create a safer work environment and prevent adverse effects on both HCWs and the broader healthcare system. Further research is needed to better document WPV in categories of HCWs other than nurses.Prospero registration numberCRD42022329574.

Project description:BackgroundMedical staff are regularly confronted with workplace violence (WPV), which poses a threat to the safety of both staff and patients. Structured de-escalation training (DET) for Emergency Department (ED) staff has been shown to positively affect the reporting of WPV incidents and possibly reduce its impact. This study aimed to describe the development of incidence rates, causes, means, targets, locations, responses, and the time of WPV events. Additionally, it explored the effect of the staff trained in DET on the objective and subjective severity of the respective WPV events.MethodsIn a retrospective, single-center cohort study, we analyzed ten years of WPV events using the data of Staff Observation Aggression Scale-Revised (SOAS-R) score (ranging from 0 to 22) in a tertiary ED from 2014 to 2023. The events were documented by ED staff and stored in the electronic health record (EHR).ResultsBetween 2014 and 2023, 160 staff members recorded 859 incidents, noting an average perceived severity of 5.78 (SD = 2.65) and SOAS-R score of 11.18 (SD = 4.21). Trends showed a non-significant rise in incident rates per 10,000 patients over time. The WPV events were most frequently reported by nursing staff, and the cause of the aggression was most often not discernible (n = 353, 54.56%). In total, n = 273 (31.78%) of the WPV events were categorized as severe, and the most frequent target of the aggressive behavior was the staff. WPV events occurred most frequently in the traumatology section and the detoxification rooms. While the majority of events could be addressed with verbal interventions, more forceful interventions were performed significantly more often for higher severity WPV events. More WPV events occurred during off-hours and were of a significantly higher objective and subjective severity. Overall, the presence of staff with completed DET led to significantly higher SOAS-R scores and higher perceived severity.ConclusionThe findings underline the relevance of WPV events in the high-risk environment of an ED. The analyzed data suggest that DET significantly fostered the awareness of WPV. While most events can be addressed with verbal interventions, WPV remains a concern that needs to be addressed through organizational measures and further research.

Dataset Information

Workplace violence against healthcare workers in Pakistan; call for action, if not now, then when? A systematic review.

Background

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Publications

Workplace violence against healthcare workers in Pakistan; call for action, if not now, then when? A systematic review.

Similar Datasets

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