Risk of Burnout among Emergency Department Staff as a Result of Violence and Aggression from Patients and Their Relatives

TY - JOUR

T1 - Risk of Burnout among Emergency Department Staff as a Result of Violence and Aggression from Patients and Their Relatives

AU - Schablon, Anja

AU - Kersten, Jan Felix

AU - Nienhaus, Albert

AU - Kottkamp, Hans Werner

AU - Schnieder, Wilfried

AU - Ullrich, Greta

AU - Schäfer, Karin

AU - Ritzenhöfer, Lisa

AU - Peters, Claudia

AU - Wirth, Tanja

PY - 2022/4/19

Y1 - 2022/4/19

N2 - Emergency department staff are often affected by incidents of violence. The aim of the study was to generate data on the frequency of violence by patients and accompanying relatives and the correlation between experienced aggression, a possible risk of burnout and a high sense of stress. Additionally, the buffering effect of good preventive preparation of care staff by the facility on aggressive visitors and patients was examined. In this cross-sectional study, members of the German Society for Interdisciplinary Emergency and Acute Medicine were surveyed. The investigation of risk factors, particularly experiences of verbal and physical violence, as well as exhaustion and stress, was carried out using ordinal regression models. A total of 349 staff from German emergency departments took part in the survey, 87% of whom had experienced physical violence by patients and 64% by relatives. 97% had been confronted with verbal violence by patients and 94% by relatives. Violence by relatives had a negative effect on perceived stress. High resilience or effective preparation of employees for potential attacks was shown to have a protective effect with regard to the burnout risk and perceived stress. Therefore, management staff play a major role in preventing violence and its impact on employees.

AB - Emergency department staff are often affected by incidents of violence. The aim of the study was to generate data on the frequency of violence by patients and accompanying relatives and the correlation between experienced aggression, a possible risk of burnout and a high sense of stress. Additionally, the buffering effect of good preventive preparation of care staff by the facility on aggressive visitors and patients was examined. In this cross-sectional study, members of the German Society for Interdisciplinary Emergency and Acute Medicine were surveyed. The investigation of risk factors, particularly experiences of verbal and physical violence, as well as exhaustion and stress, was carried out using ordinal regression models. A total of 349 staff from German emergency departments took part in the survey, 87% of whom had experienced physical violence by patients and 64% by relatives. 97% had been confronted with verbal violence by patients and 94% by relatives. Violence by relatives had a negative effect on perceived stress. High resilience or effective preparation of employees for potential attacks was shown to have a protective effect with regard to the burnout risk and perceived stress. Therefore, management staff play a major role in preventing violence and its impact on employees.

U2 - 10.3390/ijerph19094945

DO - 10.3390/ijerph19094945

M3 - SCORING: Journal article

VL - 19

JO - INT J ENV RES PUB HE

JF - INT J ENV RES PUB HE

SN - 1660-4601

IS - 9

M1 - 4945

ER -