Violence Prevention Strategies Research Articles

Level of burnout and associated factors among healthcare workers in central Uganda: A facility-based cross-sectional study.

Burnout among healthcare workers is a global concern with significant implications for both the well-being of the workforce and the quality of patient care. This facility-based cross-sectional study aimed to identify factors associated with burnout among healthcare workers in central Uganda. The study, conducted between June and July 2023, utilized a cross-sectional design involving physicians, nurses, and technicians. The study covered both public and private hospitals in central Uganda, incorporating urban and rural settings. A sample size of 550 healthcare workers was selected using a simple random sampling. Data collection involved a socio-demographic survey, the Professional Quality of Life (ProQOL-5). Descriptive statistics, Pearson Chi-square test, and ordinal regression models were employed to analyze demographic factors associated with burnout. Of 548 participants, 218(39.8%) experienced high burnout levels. Factors significantly associated with high burnout levels included having over 10 years of work experience (OR: 2.04, 95% CI: 1.12-3.73), working more than 40 hours per week (AOR: 4.46, 95% CI: 1.20-16.62), lack of management support (AOR: 14.45, 95% CI: 3.83-54.56), not experiencing workplace violence (AOR: 2.22, 95% CI: 1.31-3.76), and reporting inadequate sleep (AOR: 6.96, 95% CI: 3.86-12.57). Addressing burnout among healthcare workers in central Uganda requires targeted interventions tailored to the specific challenges faced in the region, including workload distribution, managerial support enhancement, violence prevention strategies, and promotion of adequate sleep. Urgent attention to these factors is essential for enhancing the well-being of healthcare professionals and maintaining quality patient care.

Assaults against pandemic heroes: an observational study in the Metropolitan City of Genoa in Italy

Abstract Background Escalating violence against healthcare workers is a significant public health issue that undermines care quality and workers’ health. This descriptive study aims to examine trends in aggression across different pandemic phases. Methods The study analysed reported violence among healthcare workers from 2018 to 2023 within a Local Health Authority in Genoa, Italy. Variables of interest included the severity of aggression, the professionals affected, and the locations of incidents. Data was analysed using appropriate statistical methods, including multinomial logistic regression, to assess relationships across pandemic phases. Results Reported aggressions rose from 48 incidents in 2018 to 103 in 2023, totaling 463. Pre-pandemic physical violence was at 39%, dropping to 27% during and after the pandemic (χ²=7.4, df = 2, p < 0.025). Nurses experienced the highest violence rates, with an average of 72% pre-pandemic and 74% post-pandemic, reducing to 51% during the pandemic if compared with doctors (Coef -0.80; 95%CI -1.45|-0.15). Over half of incidents occurred in Emergency and Psychiatric Services, from 77% before to 51% after pandemic. Conversely, violence in Local Services rose from 7% before to 24% during and 28% after pandemic (χ²=56.9, df = 6, p < 0.000). If compared to Hospitals, violence in Local Services increased during (Coef 1.44; 95%CI 0.40|2.48) and post-pandemic (Coef 1.001; 95%CI 0.13|1.87), and in Psychiatric Services decreased post-pandemic (Coef -0.98; 95%CI -1.67|-0.29). Conclusions Violence against healthcare workers shifted during and post-pandemic, mirroring the decentralisation of healthcare due to pandemic. The urgent development and implementation of effective violence prevention strategies are imperative. These should include training, psychological support, security enhancements, and a strong organisational culture that prioritises safety and respect. Protecting healthcare workers is crucial for their well-being and to ensure high healthcare quality. Key messages • Escalating violence undermines care quality and healthcare worker well-being. Effective prevention strategies are essential, including training, support, and an organisation that prioritises safety. • Nurses are the main victims of violence. Violence is higher in Emergency Departments, but incidents are increasing in Local Health Services, due to organisational changes during and post-pandemic.

“You Never Know Who’s Gonna Be Next”: The Role of Community Violence Intervention Workers in Responding to Homicides and Survivor Support

The racial and spatial concentration of homicides coupled with the low levels of protection, safety, and accountability afforded to surviving family, friends, and community members raises the question of who is capable of accompanying impacted individuals and negotiating safety in the aftermath of violent death. Community Violence Intervention (CVI) workers are a growing professional field of indigenous peacemakers who lead community-based efforts to both prevent and intervene violence. The current study presents original, novel research engaging CVI workers’ experiences responding to homicides to prevent retaliation and support survivors and how persistently responding to violent death in their community impacts their wellbeing. This exploratory study involved 35 in-depth, qualitative interviews with CVI workers and their supervisors in Chicago, IL. Thematic analysis indicates they are “first among first responders” and are critical information intermediaries to designate appropriate violence prevention and intervention strategies. CVI workers also experience traumatic grief, largely associated by their relationship and proximity to homicide victims. The implications highlight the distinctive contributions of CVI workers in formulating more comprehensive, community-based post-homicide strategies aimed at supporting marginalized survivors and communities disproportionately affected by violence.

Incident reporting and data monitoring of sexual violence and harassment on public transport

IntroductionSexual violence and harassment occur in different settings, including public transport, and cause significant harm to victim-survivors' mental and physical health. While sexual violence and harassment on public transport is a documented problem, the public transport sector uptake has been slow and the true prevalence of sexual violence and harassment on public transport is yet to be determined. We aimed to investigate existing public transport and key stakeholder data systems, and explore the views of service providers, to ultimately improve sexual violence and harassment incident reporting and data monitoring. MethodsUsing a mixed methods design, researchers worked with public transport providers and other interested stakeholders in one Australian state. Twelve organizations were involved in the project and six provided current data on public transport safety for analysis. An audit of public transport and stakeholder websites was also undertaken to assess sexual violence and harassment incident reporting pathways. In addition, seven managers from five public transport organizations were interviewed to capture views on gender sensitive data collection and monitoring, and the challenges and enabling factors facing the sector. ResultsThe results uncovered varied sexual violence and harassment reporting formats and subsequent limited reporting of sexual violence and harassment incidents on public transport. In addition, poor-quality data sets lacked gender sensitivity, comprehensiveness, comparability, reliability and accessibility. Three key themes from public transport providers, on sexual violence and harassment data collection included increasing incident reporting, barriers and enablers of collecting and analysing quality data and governance frameworks. A minimum data set collection tool has been developed and could be tested in future. ConclusionTo improve women's safety on public transport, enhanced gender-sensitive data collection and monitoring is required. Long term government investment in sexual violence and harassment primary prevention strategies on public transport are urgently needed.

Narrative interventions in conflict settings: Harnessing the power of narratives to prevent violence and promote peace

ABSTRACT Narrative intervention has emerged as a promising strategy for violence prevention and reconciliation in contexts of intergroup conflict. In this article, I synthesise the research on fictional narrative interventions disseminated via media and present a model elucidating the pathways of influence on attitudes and behaviours related to intergroup conflict and reconciliation. The article identifies the different psychological mechanisms typically embedded in media-based narrative interventions, such as communication of social norms, role modelling of behaviours, perspective-taking, awareness-raising, and parasocial contact. I discuss how narrative interventions influence intergroup outcomes by shaping social interactions and discussions, and address heterogeneous effects by considering three sets of factors: (1) the combination of theoretical principles embedded in the intervention; (2) intervention design and implementation; and (3) the characteristics of the conflict context. Finally, I consider the benefits of narrative interventions over other forms of intergroup conflict interventions and highlight avenues for future research.

Enhancing school safety through psychological support: Key findings and strategies

A crucial aspect of creating a safe and supportive learning environment is the integration of psychological support to reduce school violence. Research highlights that school violence impacts not only students' physical safety but also their mental health and emotional development. Effective psychological support can play a pivotal role in preventing and mitigating violent behaviors by addressing underlying emotional difficulties and unresolved trauma. Key strategies include implementing early interventions through school psychologists and counselors, who offer individual and group counseling to help students manage conflicts and intense emotions constructively. Additionally, psychological support programs can improve the school climate through workshops on emotional intelligence, stress management, and social skills, fostering empathy and reducing conflicts. Integrating psychological services with other school resources, such as emotional education programs and violence prevention strategies, is essential. Collaboration among school psychologists, teachers, parents, and administrators ensures a holistic approach to violence prevention, considering all aspects of students' school lives. The research demonstrates that peer social support significantly mediates the relationship between school victimization and psychological health. Social support acts as a buffer, mitigating the negative effects of violence, and is crucial for students of all genders and ethnicities. Furthermore, family support is identified as a vital moderator, enhancing adolescent mental health despite exposure to violence. Psychological intervention strategies, such as establishing psychological warning systems and prevention mechanisms, are essential in proactively addressing violence. Schools should focus on creating a protective environment and integrating psychological strategies into broader prevention efforts. Continuous mental health education and a safe space for students to express concerns can significantly reduce violent behaviors and support a positive educational atmosphere.

Focused deterrence, strategic management, and effective gun violence prevention

AbstractResearch SummaryThe evaluation literature suggests that focused deterrence strategies are effective in reducing gun violence. However, focused deterrence is notoriously difficult to implement and sustain. The history of focused deterrence implementation failure raises questions about its viability as a gun violence prevention strategy. Stockton, California, implemented focused deterrence three times during the past 25 years. In its most recent version, Stockton officials explicitly designed the strategy to be a permanent feature of the city's violence prevention portfolio. Although program caseloads diminished over the course of the COVID‐19 pandemic and the strategy faced leadership and resource challenges, Stockton's efforts prevented the program from being discontinued and, for those gang members who did receive treatment, delivered a robust gun violence prevention strategy. A quasi‐experimental evaluation shows that treated gang members were less likely to be shot and reduced their violent offending relative to similar untreated gang members. The focused deterrence impacts also appear to spill over to gang members who were socially connected to treated gang members. Although Stockton experienced an increase in homicides over the course of the COVID‐19 pandemic, the increase was not as steep as other comparable California cities.Policy ImplicationsFocused deterrence strategies can be effective responses to gun violence problems when implemented properly. A priori planning is essential when jurisdictions prepare to adopt focused deterrence. Strategic management actions, such as maintaining a robust network of partnering agencies, developing accountability structures and sustainability plans, and conducting upfront and ongoing problem analysis, are critical elements that must be in place for focused deterrence to be effective and sustainable.

Eliciting psychiatric nurses' preferences for workplace violence prevention: a protocol for discrete choice experiment.

Workplace violence against healthcare workers has become a serious global public health problem. The incidence of workplace violence towards Psychiatric nurses is higher than in all other medical institutions, up to 84.2% per year. It not only negatively affects many aspects of healthcare workers' lives, but also destroys the harmony of the nurse-patient relationship and reduces the quality of nursing care. The number of psychiatric nurses in China was approximately 96,000, far lower than most other countries and unable to meet the growing demand for mental health. However, the increase in workplace violence has future exacerbates the current shortage of nurses. Therefore, it is necessary to develop effective strategies to prevent psychiatric nurses from suffering from workplace violence, thereby to reduce nurse turnover and improve the quality of nursing care. A comprehensive understanding of psychiatric nurses' preferences and priorities for preventing workplace violence is an important prerequisite before formulating strategies and taking measures. Unfortunately, to date, no research has investigated the psychiatric nurses' preferences. Therefore, a discrete choice experiment (DCE) is conducting to explore the psychiatric nurses' preferences for workplace violence prevention. This article reports on methodological details of the DCE. Six attributes were developed through a literature review, one-on-one interviews and focus group discussions. D-efficient design in NGENE was used to generate choice sets. SPSS 24.0 will be used for descriptive analysis of social Demography, and Stata 16.0 will be used for analysis of DCE data. A multinomial logit model will be used to preliminarily explore trade-offs between workplace violence prevention characteristics included in the choice tasks. Then, in a mixed logit model, we plan to choose some arbitrarily defined base violence prevention program and will use the nlcom command to evaluate the probability of an alternative violence prevention program. The study was approved by the relevant ethics committees. Our findings will emphasize priority intervention areas based on the preferences of psychiatric nurses and provide references for hospitals to develop and improve workplace violence prevention strategies. The results will be shared through seminars, policy briefs, peer-reviewed journal articles and online blogs.

Exploring space and practices of control in long-term residential care violence prevention strategies

Long-term residential care (LTRC) should be a safe place to work and to live, but it can be a site of violent situations for older people and staff. In this article, we draw on critical geographies, aging, and violence research to analyze how staff perceive, manage, and control the risk of violence in LTRC. Specifically, we explore the role of space as an instrument of control in places of care; the language of risk and risk containment in these places; and how movement figures into management of the risk of violence. Data included telephone and web-based semi-structured interviews with 29 staff in two Canadian provinces from 2021 to 2023, which were analyzed inductively. LTRC staff described having access to and support from other staff as an important feature of safe places. They also emphasized visibility, opportunities to escape from violent or threatening situations, being cognizant of objects that may be used as weapons and moving some residents to other tables, rooms, or specialized units. Finally, some staff acknowledged tensions between person-centered care and protecting staff and resident safety. Our analysis raises concerns about whether the management of space, objects, and activities employed to promote safety contribute to the care and dignity of older people. By drawing attention to the role of space, place, and risk containment in managing violent situations, we illustrate the important contributions of critical geography in troubling institutional care for older people.

A Scoping Review of Bystander-Based Sexual Violence Prevention Training for College Students in Fraternities and Sororities.

Bystander-based sexual violence (SV) prevention trainings are offered on college campuses across the United States to meet federal Title IX requirements, as they have proven to be an effective strategy for violence prevention. Greek-affiliated students (fraternity and sorority members) are at a higher risk of sexual assault than their peers; however, few trainings consider the specific needs of this population, and program adaptations for this high-risk group may be needed. This scoping review identifies and describes the bystander trainings delivered to Greek-affiliated students in the US and Canada. An eight-database search was conducted following PRISMA-ScR guidelines. The review identified 81 unique sources, with 18 meeting the inclusion criteria. Eleven specific training programs were identified, encompassing qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-method studies. The thematic analysis revealed best practices, including the importance of peer leaders, interactive sessions, and tailored content to Greek culture, as well as barriers such as a lack of engagement and an inadequate session length. The review underscores the need for tailored interventions to effectively address the unique cultural characteristics and high-risk nature of Greek-affiliated students. These findings provide valuable insights for improving the design and implementation of bystander interventions to enhance their efficacy in preventing sexual violence within this population.

Penggunaan Design Thingking Model untuk Pencegahan Tindakan Bullying pada Santri di Pondok Pesantren ABC

It is important for an organization or institution to have an effective and quality violence prevention strategy in carrying out the vision and mission that has been made to realize the goals for the organization or institution itself. This study aims to find out the handling strategies carried out by the ABC Islamic Boarding School from the stage of student safety planning to supervision evaluation to improve environmental safety for its students. This research is a qualitative descriptive research that uses the design thinking method. The informants in this study are the principal, teachers, and students of the ABC Islamic Boarding School. This research is located at the ABC Islamic Boarding School. The data collection methods used are interviews, observations, and documentation studies. As a result, the application of the design thinking model has proven to be effective in identifying the root cause of the problem and creating innovative solutions to prevent bullying in the Islamic boarding school environment. Through the stages of empathy, definition, idea, prototype, and testing, the research team was able to understand the needs and challenges faced by the students. Bullying is bound to have bad consequences, not only for those who do it but especially for those who are targeted, affecting their personal, social, and educational aspects. Holding positive activities for students who can instill family values and solidarity, as well as organizing educational sessions about bullying during their stay at the pesantren, can help prevent this behavior from happening again in the future.

Student Attempts of Violence Following a School Threat Assessment

ABSTRACT Behavioral threat assessment is a widely used violence prevention strategy in schools, but there is little research on how frequently a student attempts to carry out a threat of violence after a threat assessment and whether schools accurately recognize and classify these cases. This study investigated: 1) how often students attempted violence and 2) whether threats judged to be more serious were more likely to be attempted. As part of a statewide assessment, 21 Florida public school districts submitted deidentified records of 621 threat cases from the 2020–2021 academic year. Of these, 107 (17%) threats were attempted and 3 (0.5%) resulted in a serious injury. Threats classified by school teams as serious substantive (OR = 27) or very serious substantive (OR = 50) were significantly more likely to be attempted than non-threats. Overall, these findings support a strong association between threat classification and likelihood a threat is attempted.

Prevalence and Characteristics of People with Disabilities Among Abused Victims in Saudi Arabia

BackgroundAbuse is an ongoing public health issue that results in increased morbidity and mortality rates. Abuse against individuals with disabilities is a pervasive and deeply concerning issue, often compounded by factors of vulnerability and dependence. The majority of disabled individuals experience abuse, with the majority enduring it repeatedly. Identifying the problem is the first step towards preventing abuse. This study aimed to identify the prevalence of people with disabilities among abused victims and the victim’s associated risk factors in Saudi Arabia.MethodsThis cross-sectional study obtained data from the National Family Safety Registry. All registered children and adults between April 2017 and December 2022 from 93 centers across 13 regions of Saudi Arabia were included. Logistic regression models were used to determine the association between independent variables and victim-related risk factors such as the onset of abuse complications, the victim being an adult or child, the victim’s gender, and whether they had been previously abused.ResultsIndividuals with disabilities comprise 1.4% (n = 199) of all reported cases of abuse (n = 14,004), and the trend of violence against people with disabilities has decreased during the 6-year study period. Of the abused people with disabilities, 72.4% were children, 57.8% were males, 45.2% were previously abused, and 65.3% had complications from the abuse. Caregiver type, perpetrator gender, perpetrator age, and previous abuse status were significant factors.ConclusionsThis study highlights the disability prevalence among reported abuse cases and evaluates victim’s risk factors in Saudi Arabia, which demonstrates an urgency for targeted intervention and support. People with disabilities constitute a vulnerable demographic who require increased support and resources. Comprehensive data collection can be utilized for effective violence prevention strategies. Further research should explore qualitative methods and survey the rates of abuse among people with disabilities in the community to gain deeper insights.

Using the Socio-Ecological Model to Understand Increased Risk of Gun Violence in the African American Community.

Gun violence is a major public health issue of growing concern in the United States (U.S.) with 48,830 lives lost to gun related violence in 2021, documenting the highest number of gun related homicides and suicides ever recorded. The African American community is disproportionately impacted by gun violence and members of this community are almost 14x more likely to die by gun homicide than their white counterparts. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has identified a socio-ecological framework as a lens through which to better understand violence and inform potential prevention strategies to address it. This model identifies four levels (individual, relationship, community, societal) which help to enhance our understanding of the complex interplay between individuals and their environments. Here, we use this model to understand why the African American community experiences elevated risk of gun violence in the U.S. and propose strategies for prevention. Understanding the issue of gun violence beyond individual level risk, this analysis highlights the interplay between multiple levels including the ways in which societal level factors influence violence. While this paper provides a lens through which to understand the multi-leveled factors that contribute to gun violence in the African American community, it also serves as a call to action for policymakers, scholars, and agencies to develop culturally informed policy and programming efforts specific to those who are most impacted.

Community-Academic Partnership to Assess the Role of Physical Disinvestment on Firearm Violence in Toledo, OH.

Reversing physical disinvestment, e.g., by remediating abandoned buildings and vacant lots, is an evidence-based strategy to reduce urban firearm violence. However, adoption of this strategy has been inconsistent across US cities. Our community-academic partnership sought to support adoption in Toledo, OH, USA, by generating locally relevant analyses on physical disinvestment and firearm violence. We used a spatial case-control design with matching. Physical disinvestment measures were derived from a citywide parcel foot audit conducted by the Lucas County Land Bank in summer 2021. Firearm violence outcomes were incident-level shootings data from the Toledo Police Department from October 2021 through February 2023. Shooting locations were matched to controls 1:4 on poverty rate, roadway characteristics, and zoning type. Exposures were calculated by aggregating parcels within 5-min walking buffers of each case and control point. We tested multiple disinvestment measures, including a composite index. Models were logistic regressions that adjusted for the matching variables and for potential spatial autocorrelation. Our sample included N = 281 shooting locations and N = 1124 matched controls. A 1-unit increase in the disinvestment score, equal to approximately 1 additional disrepair condition for the average parcel within the walking buffer, was associated with 1.68 times (95% CI: 1.36, 2.07) higher odds of shooting incidence. Across all other measures, greater disinvestment was associated with higher odds of shooting incidence. Our finding of a strong association between physical disinvestment and firearm violence in Toledo can inform local action. Community-academic partnership could help increase adoption of violence prevention strategies focused on reversing physical disinvestment.

Challenges in Evaluating a Community-Level Intervention to Address Root Causes of Youth Violence

Violence disproportionately impacts Black American youth, representing a major health disparity. Addressing the possible root causes of structural inequities to reduce violence may increase the impact of prevention strategies. However, efforts to evaluate the impact of such interventions pose numerous methodological challenges, particularly around selecting an effective evaluation design to detect change at the community level, with adequate power and sampling, and appropriate constructs and measurement strategies. We propose a multiple baseline experimental design to evaluate the impact of a community-level youth violence and suicidality prevention strategy. A multiple baseline experimental design with multiple community units balances the need for scientific rigor with practical and values-based considerations. It includes randomization and plausible counterfactuals without requiring large samples or placing some communities in the position of not receiving the intervention. Considerations related to the conceptualization of the logic model, mechanisms of change, and health disparity outcomes informed the development of the measurement strategy. The strengths and weaknesses of a multiple baseline experimental design are discussed in comparison to versions of randomized clinical trials. Future health disparity intervention evaluation research will benefit from (1) building a shared sense of urgent public need to promote health; (2) respecting the validity of values- and partnership-based decision-making; and (3) promoting community-based and systems-level partnerships in scientific grant funding. The described study has been registered prospectively at clinicaltrials.gov, Protocol Record 21–454.

Trends in violent offending among people with schizophrenia: A 10-year ecological study

Violent offending committed by people with schizophrenia has been a public concern. The present study aims to examine the incidence of violent offending among people with schizophrenia and its correlations with mental health resources and economic factors. In this study, an examination of violent offending by people with schizophrenia and those identified as not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder (NCRMD) between 2010 and 2019 in China's Hunan province was undertaken. Principal component analysis (PCA) and regression analyses were used to explore the association of violent offending in people with schizophrenia and those identified as NCRMD with violent offending in the general population, mental health medical resources, and provincial GDP. Between 2010 and 2019, a total of 2,093 people with schizophrenia committed violent offending in Hunan province, including 1,374 (65.6%) cases identified as NCRMD. Over the period, the incidence of violent offending in people with schizophrenia and those identified as NCRMD has been decreasing. The incidences were positively correlated with the incidence of violent offending in the general population and negatively associated with mental health resources and provincial GDP. These findings may be valuable in helping to develop strategies for violence prevention and risk management for people with schizophrenia.

Engaging with immigrant students’ voices in the school environment: an analysis of policy documents through school websites

BackgroundFor students to feel happy and supported in school, it is important that their views are taken seriously and integrated into school policies. However, limited information is available how the voices of immigrant students are considered in European school contexts. This study generated evidence from written documents to ascertain how student voice practices are described at school websites.MethodsBetween 2 March and 8 April 2021, we reviewed the policy documents publicly available on school websites. The schools located in areas of high immigration in six European countries: Austria, England, Finland, Germany, Romania, and Switzerland. The READ approach was used to guide the steps in the document analysis in the context of policy studies (1) ready the materials, 2) data extraction, 3) data analysis, 4) distil the findings). A combination of qualitative and quantitative approaches with descriptive statistics (n, %, Mean, SD, range) was used for analysis.ResultsA total of 412 documents (305 schools) were extracted. Based on reviewing school websites, reviewers’strongly agreed’ in seven documents (2%) that information related to seeking student voices could be easily found. On the contrary, in 247 documents (60%), reviewers strongly indicated that information related to seeking student voices was missing. No clear characteristics could be specified to identify those schools were hearing students’ voices is well documented. The most common documents including statements related to student voice were anti-bullying or violence prevention strategies (75/412) and mission statements (72/412).ConclusionsOur document analysis based on publicly accessible school websites suggest that student voices are less frequently described in school written policy documents. Our findings provide a baseline to further monitor activities, not only at school level but also to any governmental and local authorities whose intention is to serve the public and openly share their values and practices with community members. A deeper understanding is further needed about how listening to student voices is realized in daily school practices.

Communication Strategies For Sexual Violence Prevention and Handling In Higher Education on The Youtube Account of The Ministry of Education and Culture of The Republic Of Indonesia

Communication Strategies For Sexual Violence Prevention and Handling In Higher Education on The Youtube Account of The Ministry of Education and Culture of The Republic Of Indonesia

Workplace Violence in the Pediatric Emergency Department: A National Survey of Physicians in the United States.

Previous work shows that health care workers, and particularly emergency department (ED) staff, are at an above average risk of workplace violence (WPV), defined as verbal threats or physical violence in the workplace. Previous data suggest that staff of a single pediatric ED frequently feel unsafe. The objective of this study was to conduct the first national survey study to assess the prevalence and incidence of WPV in the pediatric ED. In this cross-sectional survey study, a representative sample of US pediatric emergency medicine physicians were invited to participate in a national survey adapted from the previously validated Workplace Violence in the Health Sector questionnaire from the World Health Organization. The primary outcome measure was the proportion of physicians who have been exposed to WPV. Rates of exposure to violence, reporting habits, and physician perception of various violence prevention strategies were studied secondarily. Surveys were completed by 207 (45%) invited participants, representing 31 US children's hospitals. The prevalence of WPV exposure was 96%. Physical violence with a weapon was witnessed by 20% of participants. Injuries requiring medical attention or time off work were experienced by 10% of participants. Half of participants never reported violent events. Security guards were welcome by 99%, armed law enforcement officers by 70%, and metal detectors by 81% of physicians. Self-arming was opposed by 85% of respondents. Exposure to WPV is frequent among pediatric emergency medicine physicians with a prevalence similar to that of general emergency departments. Workplace violence remains underreported. This national survey contributes to the objective evaluation of individual- and systems-level violence prevention interventions.