Nurse-Reported Bullying and Documented Adverse Patient Events: An Exploratory Study in a US Hospital.

Abstract

Negative nurse work environments have been associated with nurse bullying and poor nurse health. However, few studies have examined the influence of nurse bullying on actual patient outcomes. The purpose of the study was to examine the association between nurse-reported bullying and documented nursing-sensitive patient outcomes. Nurses (n = 432) in a large US hospital responded to a survey on workplace bullying. Unit-level data for 5 adverse patient events and nurse staffing were acquired from the National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators. Generalized linear models were used to examine the association between bullying and adverse patient events. A Bayesian regression analysis was used to confirm the findings. After controlling for nurse staffing and qualification, nurse-reported bullying was significantly associated with the incidence of central-line-associated bloodstream infections (P < .001). Interventions to address bullying, a malleable aspect of the nurse practice environment, may help to reduce adverse patient events.