Examining the Frequency of Violence versus Nurses and the Factors Affecting It in Hospitals

Nurses are exposed to various types of violence due to direct contact with patients and exposure to multiple tensions. Therefore, the present study was conducted to investigate the frequency of violence against nurses and the factors affecting it among the personnel working in hospitals. This study was a descriptive-cross-sectional study whose population consisted of 340 nursing personnel. The data collection tool included a Workplace Violence and Demographic Questionnaire in the Health Sector Questionnaire. After completing and collecting the questionnaires, data analysis was done by SPSS statistical software. In the analysis, descriptive statistics and t and chi-square tests were used in inferential statistics. Based on the investigations, 52% of nurses had experienced verbal violence, 15.6 racial (ethnic) violence, and 12% physical violence. Patients' companions were the most common causes of physical violence (80.6%) and verbal violence (57.1%). Demographic characteristics including age, gender, education level, and work experience had a significant relationship with physical and verbal violence. In this study, according to the opinion of the nursing personnel, in most cases, the lack of restrictive laws and regulations, the lack of security facilities, and the lack of people's awareness about the duties of nurses were among the factors that caused violence in the workplace. The results of this study showed that the most common types of violence against nursing personnel were verbal and the patient's companions were the main perpetrators of violence in these cases. It seems that more appropriate control of patients and their companions, training of hospital security personnel, and increasing people's awareness of the duties of nursing personnel can reduce workplace violence.