A new study on workplace violence (WPV) in emergency departments found a 1,080% increase in workplace violence reporting when nurses were asked directly in a survey about their experiences.
WPV in healthcare is a “pervasive, perpetual, and underreported problem across United States healthcare facilities.” WPV includes “verbal, nonverbal, written, or physical aggression; threatening, intimidating, harassing, or humiliating words or actions; bullying; sabotage; sexual harassment; physical assaults; or other behaviors of concern involving staff, licensed practitioners, patients, or visitors.”
A 2022 survey analysis found that “more than 2 nurses are assaulted every hour” in the U.S. A more recent survey “showed that more than 80% of nurses experienced at least 1 type of WPV in 2023.” Underreporting is a further complication with WPV; studies show that “as little as 6.5%, 12%, and 30% of nurses will formally report WPV events. Emergency nurses often underreport WPV due to a misguided perception that it is an inherent part of their job.”
WPV data in an academic medical center found that “the emergency department experienced a 150% rise in reported violent events and a 36% increase in team member injuries compared with the previous year.”
Out of 34 responses to a needs assessment survey, a total of 33 (97%) of respondents “xperienced both verbal and physical violence in the emergency department, with 29% reporting injury. Of the 97% respondents who experienced violence, 38% of respondents (13 of 34) reported >10 violent events in the last 90 days and only 6 WPV reports were electronically filed in the official hospital reporting system during that time frame.”
