Evaluation of violence against emergency physicians

Abstract

Aim: To identify the causes of violence in the emergency department and suggest ways to reduce the violence experienced.
 Material and Method: The population of this cross-sectional survey study consisted of all emergency medicine physicians who participated in the symposium on frequent emergencies held in Cyprus on May 6, 2022. The survey consisted of a total of 20 items comprising 16 multiple-choice and four fill-in-the-blank questions related to demographic characteristics and violence. It was administered to 230 physicians who volunteered to participate in the study.
 Results: A total of 230 physicians, 65.2% (n=150) male and 34.8% (n=80) female, participated in the study. It was determined that 28.7% of the participants had been exposed to physical violence, 89.2% to verbal violence, and 1.3% to sexual violence within the last year. The factors causing violence were identified as the low educational level of patients’ and their family members, patient requests for unnecessary medical practices, aggressive nature of family members, and patients’ desire to be examined before their turn. As the number of shifts worked by the physicians and number of treated patients increased, the frequency of exposure to violence also increased. Women were exposed to more violence. As the title and age of the physicians increased, the frequency of exposure to violence decreased.
 Conclusion: We consider that violence against physicians can be reduced by informing patients and patient’s relatives and improving the working conditions of physicians.