Workplace violence against security personnel at a university hospital in Egypt: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background: Violence is common among security personnel. To the best of the authors' knowledge no recent studies have investigated this problem. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence and associated factors of violence against hospital security personnel and describe circumstances of violence, type of perpetrators, and victims’ response. Methods: In total, 170 security personnel from a university hospital in Egypt were recruited in this cross-sectional study. Data were collected using the Arabic version of a questionnaire developed by the International Labour Office. Results: The majority (87.3%) of security personnel reported violence exposure in the past year. Being a woman and working more than 5 years were independent predictors of violence exposure. The commonest forms of physical violence were pushing and beating. Verbal abuse and threats were the commonest emotional violence. Patients and their relatives/friends were the commonest perpetrators of violence. Conclusions: Violence is common among hospital security personnel in this setting. Adequate training and recruitment of more security personnel may contribute to decreasing violence.