Workplace violence in nursing in Queensland, Australia: A self‐reported study
- 22 July 2003
- journal article
- website
- Published by Wiley in International Journal of Nursing Practice
- Vol. 9 (4), 261-268
- https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1440-172x.2003.00431.x
Abstract
This paper reports on workplace violence, self‐reported as part of a survey among members of the Queensland Nurses’ Union (QNU) in October 2001. The aim of the overall study was to ascertain how nurses perceived their work and their working conditions and to use the results of the study to inform strategic planning of the QNU. The participants of this study were drawn from a stratified random sample of 2800 QNU members employed in the public, the private acute and the aged care sectors. The total number of completed surveys analysed was 1436: 441 aged care, 497 public and 498 private acute sector surveys. The results suggest that the rate of workplace violence differs significantly across sectors. In the three months immediately prior to the survey, 50% of aged care sector nurses experienced some form of workplace violence compared to 47% of public sector nurses and 29% of acute private sector nurses. The major source of workplace violence was from patients. The second most common source of violence varied. Nurses in the public sector signified visitors and relatives while nurses in the aged care and acute private sectors indicated other nurses. The study found that inexperienced nurses are more likely to report workplace violence than experienced nurses. Additionally, the more experienced the nurse, the less likely they are to perceive workplace policies and procedures for workplace violence as effective. Additional findings include an apparent lack of policies and procedures for workplace violence in rural and remote areas, and an association between the designation of a nurse and the reported level of workplace violence.Keywords
This publication has 11 references indexed in Scilit:
- The content of management of violence policy documents in United Kingdom acute inpatient mental health servicesJournal of Advanced Nursing, 2002
- Who would want to be a nurse? Violence in the workplace - a factor in recruitment and retentionJournal of Nursing Management, 2002
- Workplace violence in the health sector: a problem of epidemic proportionInternational Nursing Review, 2001
- A theory of dependent-care: a corollary theory to Orem's theory of self-care.Nursing Science Quarterly, 2001
- Nurses’ perceptions of the nature and frequency of aggression in general ward settings and high dependency areasJournal of Clinical Nursing, 2000
- Implementation and evaluation of a practical intervention programme for dealing with violence towards health care workersJournal of Advanced Nursing, 2000
- Aggression and violence in health care professionsJournal of Advanced Nursing, 2000
- Violence in mental health care: the experiences of mental health nurses and psychiatristsJournal of Advanced Nursing, 1999
- Patient aggression in a general hospital setting: Do nurses perceive it to be a problem?International Journal of Nursing Practice, 1998
- Sexual Harassment and Hostile Environments in the Perioperative AreaAORN Journal, 1996